Star Wars x Hogan's Heroes
by dragonbreath88
Summary: Couldn't think up of a title. No summary, just enjoy. It will get better as it goes on. Takes place during season 2 of Star wars rebels. Rating might change
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

A lone figure strolled down the streets, her face hidden behind a Mandelorian helmet, which was decorated with symbols from the Old Republic. Her blaster, which hung at her belt, hit her leg with every step. The shadowy figure stopped at an alleyway where her new job was supposed to meet her. Looking around, the young bounty hunter saw her new boss was late. Like every other job she had. A sound deeper in the alley caused her gloved hands to reach for the blaster at her side, her gloveless fingertips twitching every so often. With her free hand, the stranger reached up and turned on her night vision option on her helmet. She sighed in relief when she spotted a light blue female Rodian struggling in the dark. Her new job. This woman didn't look rich enough to afford the bounty hunter, but she looked desperate enough.

 _I wonder what she wants,_ the bounty hunter thought as she silently offered the Rodian female a hand. The female hesitated before taking the offer. The human female bounty hunter removed her helmet showing how young she was, maybe around twenty-five.

"Are you alright?" the young bounty hunter asked. The concern in her voice seemed to surprise the Rodian.

"Yes," she answered, her voice scratchy. "Are you the White Eagle?" The bounty hunter nodded. "My only daughter was kidnapped by some slavers. I don't have your money. Well not all of it but this is all I have." She held open her hand to reveal approximately twenty Imperial credits. If that was all she had then it didn't matter if she got her daughter back, the Empire would put the mother away for not paying taxes. Gently, White Eagle closed the Rodian mother's hands. The light blue mother looked up, questioning the bounty hunter with her green speckled eyes.

"I can't take this from you," the bounty hunter spoke quietly. "Where did you last see the slavers? What's your daughter's name?"

The Rodian's eyes lit up with joy. "I last saw them at the market. A loth cat distracted my daughter. Her name's Adi."

"Adi," the bounty hunter repeated with a smile. "Okay. I'll see what I can do." The White Eagle removed thirty more imperial credits from her moneybag. The mother looked up with surprise a smile ghosting across her lips. "So, your daughter can have a home to come back to."

"Oh, thank you!" The mother exclaimed as White Eagle walked out of the alley. Immediately the young woman headed straight towards a repair shop taking the back streets and alleys to avoid the many storm troopers that were stationed on the planet. Once she arrived at the shop she went straight to the Mon Calamari that was currently working on her ship. Except he wasn't there, her ship sitting alone in the empty workshop.

"Hello?" the bounty hunter called, her voice echoing throughout the hangar. "Bonga? Are ya here?" A noise from a catwalk had her blaster in hand, finger on the trigger.

"Uh a little help?" the Calamari asked. He was apparently hanging upside down from the catwalk, his legs tangled in some wires. The White Eagle sighed as she holstered her weapon, shaking her head slightly.

As she climbed the stairs, she silently asked the pale pink Calamari, "How do you get yourself into these sort of situations?"

"You'd be surprised." He answered with a mad type of smile. It took a while but the White Eagle got him down.

"Why can't you use that…sun sword or whatever?" The water creature asked rubbing his legs.

The bounty hunter rolled her eyes taking off her helmet before answering. "You know exactly why. Just carrying that thing is a death sentence. Besides, I'm not sure if it even works."

The 'sun sword' her alien friend was referring to was a light saber, the weapon of the Jedi who were the protectors of the galaxy before the Clone Wars, before the massacre. White Eagle had told everyone she came across the ancient weapon on the black market being sold among other trinkets from the War. She bought it, mainly so she could have it just to have it, but any of her friends who knew her during her childhood (who were all dead unfortunately) knew why she really needed it.

White Eagle walked over to her Jedi starfighter, also a trinket she 'bought'. With a cocked eyebrow, she simply asked, "What's the verdict Bonga?"

Bonga took a deep breath as if preparing for a long explanation. "Well for starters, the engine is extremely old, so I had to replace it, which will cost you extra, by the way. The landing gear is unusable and unfortunately for you unrepairable. And the hyper-drive will not take you as far as you would like. Other than that, it's in a good condition for a fifteen-year-old starfighter from the Clone Wars."

'Yeah,' White Eagle said distantly. "It's seen a lot of action."

"Anyway," Bonga sighed, chasing away the thickening silence. "You have a job?"

Eagle nodded. "A single Rodian mother," she answered walking to her spare ship while Bonga hooked up the fuel line. "Her daughter was kidnapped by slavers and I'm going to teach them a lesson about kidnapping little girls on Garrel."

With that she hopped into her starfighter and took off.

A few standard hours later, her starfighter had came out of hyperspace approaching the slavers ship, which hovered over the now empty planet of Genosis. No one exactly knew what happened to the creepy bugs that inhabited the desert planet but for White Eagle, it was fine by her. The ship slowly got closer, White Eagle psyching herself up for the fight that as sure to come. Suddenly a light blinked on her console. When she pressed it a light blue holographic form of a member of the Zygerian Slave Guild appeared.

" _And what can I do for the great White Eagle?"_ The Zygerian male asked.

"I'm looking for you Gyjo," the White Eagle answered. "I heard you have a fresh batch of slaves. Would you mind dearly if I had the fist pick of the litter?"

Gyjo's smile grew until it was one of a sadistic person. Just like he was. "Of course, White Eagle. The pleasure would be all mine. Land in hanger three. I will be there when you arrive." With that he vanished.

White Eagle dropped the happy smile she had plastered on her face. She _hated_ slavers, hated dealing with slavers and absolutely hated talking to slavers. They were the lowest of the low in her book, having to rely on selling people for prophet. It physically made her sick. But she had to do what she had to do survive and make a living. Punching the throttle on her ship White Eagle carefully steered towards Hanger Three, spotting the slime ball next to a bigger, probably better ship she recognized from the Clone Wars. She just might have to steal that if she got the chance. White Eagle carefully sat her old starfighter next to the bucket of bolts, hopping out when all her systems had shut off, discreetly grabbing the light saber and hooking it on her back belt.

"Ah my dear White Eagle," the male greeted with opened arms. The Bounty Hunter had to swallow to keep the large amount of bile from rising.

"Gyjo," White Eagle nodded in greeting. She strolled past him as the slaver quickened his pace and fell in stride with the bounty hunter. "So how many do you have this time?"

"Just one," he answered, his accent quickly getting in his way. "A little Rodian from Garrel. She will fetch a pretty price on the black market." White Eagle's rage reached a boiling point but she forced it down.

Gyjo led her down to the deepest part of the ship, taking all the twists and turns that this ship had to offer. White Eagle knew exactly what the Zygerian male was doing or attempted to do anyway. He was attempting to throw off her sense of direction back to the hanger. Of course, White Eagle took in every detail, marked every exit and even made a mental map back to the hanger using the direction back to the hanger based on the passage they took.

Finally, after hours of walking the Zygerian slaver and human bounty hunter arrived in the detention level. White Eagle noticed a stark absence of other crewmembers, however there was a small number of maintenance droids. Looking past the force fields that separated the free from the imprisoned White Eagle noticed the majority of the cells were empty, except for one in the far back where a medium-blue Rodian was huddled in her cell.

Adi. She looked okay, except for the fact her large bug eyes looked slightly red from crying. When the child looked up the bounty hunter made sure to smile slightly and wink before she turned to Gyjo, her voice serious. "You will release her into my care or else."

"Or else what?" Gyjo smiled his sick smile before pressing a button on his wrist. Suddenly the remaining Zygerian Guild surrounded White Eagle, blasters charging up the only sound. "I hear the Empire is willing to pay a pretty price for Jedi." White Eagle's heart stopped dead in her chest. How did they…no! They're bluffing.

"I don't know what you're talking about." The bounty hunter stated with all she had that the slaver was bluffing.

"Who cares right?" The male asked shrugging "I get rid of the thorn in my side, along with the Rodian. I will be set for life."

"Don't forget Gyjo," White Eagle warned, her hand slowly edging towards her blaster. "The Empire will find out about your little business here, and I heard it doesn't like the competition."

As quick as a flash, White Eagle pulled her blaster out and opened fire, executing a small handful of them before the slavers opened fire on her. White Eagle soon dispatched of the rest of the Zygerians before pressing the button that downed the cell wall. The Rodian immediately latched onto her leg.

"Ah okay time to let go little one," she gently tried to pry the child off. "Adi get off!"

"But you're like me!" she whined, looking up at the bounty hunter with large innocent eyes. "I can feel it."

Eagle's heart was pounding in her chest a cold sweat breaking out. This child…she could be force sensitive but of course Eagle couldn't be sure until she got back to her ship. Not knowing if there were more slavers on the ship, White Eagle took off towards the hanger with Adi clutching her leg with a vice grip. Practically limping, White Eagle arrived at her ship and the bucket of bolts after planting charges all over the ship. Quickly and with smooth movements, White Eagle moved her starfighter into the hanger of the _Twilight_ turning on the gravity locks. Adi had taken her place in the co-pilot's seat her skinny legs swinging back and forth. White Eagle took the pilot's seat and quickly turned the ship on thanking whoever was watching over her that there was enough fuel to get her and her passenger back to Garrel.

They took off, stopping a safe distance to witness the destruction and final annihilation of the Zygerian Guild. The explosion was so beautiful, the destruction so complete it drew a tear from White Eagle's eye. The Zygerian Guild split many families up, took many children away from their homes and wiped out many species. They deserved the fates and punishment they received from the Empire during and after the Great Purge. Shaking her head White Eagle turned the ship around and plunged into hyperspace.

A few standard minutes later, Adi had come to the barracks on the order of the bounty hunter that rescued her from those evil men. In the bounty hunter's hand, she held some sort of rusty and strange device that the Rodian had never seen before. A strange pull was suddenly felt, towards the human almost like a string was attached at Adi's waist and pulled her towards the strange and mysterious bounty hunter. The human glanced at Adi before returning to fiddling with the device. Unsure of what to do Adi took a seat facing the bounty hunter.

"Give me your hand," the bounty hunter ordered. Aid hesitantly extended her hand, which the hunter swabbed and pricked causing the child to wince slightly at. The bounty hunter put the child's finger on the device before wiping away the blood. The machine beeped and Adi was about to leave due to being bored before the bounty hunter yelled in shock and happiness.

"You're…. you're a…" Her words seemed to stick in her throat in excitement and shock. Finally, she seemed to get the words out, "you're a youngling."

The woman immediately stood up and walked out.

" _Are you sure?"_ Hera Syndulla asked. She was part of a rebel cell on Lothal, a lime green Twi'lek pilot. White Eagle had been aware of the fledgling rebellion and offered any intel she got her hands on but refused to fight on the front lines. After the bounty hunter had taken Adi's midichlorian count, White Eagle had made sure to contact the only person who could possibly help Adi and her mother.

"Positive. She is strong enough to be trained. As a Jedi or…. a Sith."

" _Should I send Specter 1 and 6?_ " The Twi'leck asked.

"I would probably advise against that," the bounty hunter answered. "If you can, get in touch with Fulcrum. I'll arrange a meeting place between them. Hopefully Fulcrum can get them somewhere safe. White Eagle out." The bounty hunter switched the COM off right as Adi walked in. "We are approaching Garrel. I'd buckle up if I were you."

The young Rodian followed orders, taking a seat next to White Eagle. While soon the only sounds were the controls, White Eagle sensed the Adi's eyes were on her, wanting to ask something but probably too afraid to ask. So, the human tried to strike up a conversation.

"So 'Adi' is an interesting name," White Eagle kept her eyes on the controls.

"My mommy says that I was named after the Jedi Master," the little Rodian explained. "But I heard all Jedi were evil."

"Not all of them," White Eagle muttered under her breath. "They were the protectors of the galaxy for a thousand years, keeping the balance and peace. Before they were massacred."

"Did you know any Jedi?" the small girl asked. When White Eagle glanced her way, she saw the small Rodian looking up at her.

"Yes," White Eagle answered quietly. "I knew many Jedi." Silence returned and stayed in the ship until the ship touched down on Garrel and the two made their way to Adi's home. As soon as the little girl spotted her home she gasped in happiness and she broke out in a grin. Adi let go of White Eagle's hand and ran towards her home shouting at the top of her lungs, "Mama! I'm home, I'm home!"

The door opened up and Adi's mother walked out, her face brightening when she saw her daughter. They collapsed in a hug, the mother sobbing with delight. Once Adi had run back in the house, the mother turned towards the bounty hunter with a small smile on her face.

"Thank you," the mother chocked. "Thank you so much for finding her."

"You're very welcome," White Eagle took the mother's hands in her own. "Your daughter is strong in the Force. The Emperor will be after her and once he sends his assassins to take her, she will never be heard from again. To protect both you and your daughter I have called my associates from the Rebellion to pick you and your daughter up at these coordinates." She handed the Rodian mother a coded datapad, "and take you somewhere the Emperor won't feel Adi's presence. And maybe just maybe after the Empire's fall, she can train properly."

The Rodian female looked over the coordinates, her brow ridge furrowing. "But…this is in the Outer Rim."

"Yes. You can choose any planet in the Outer Rim and stay there until the Empire falls."

"Thank you so much for your help," The mother thanked. "There must be something we can do to repay you? Perhaps a hot meal before you go?"

White Eagle had to admit that it did sound tempting. She hadn't had a hot meal in fifteen years but she couldn't stay.

"I'm afraid that I cannot stay but thank you for your offer." And with that Eagle walked off into the darkness, unaware of the following shadows.

"So, you just walked off?" Bonga asked his face buried in the hood of the _Twilight._ "Without payment or anything?"

"Yep," Eagle answered simply, fiddling with a power coupling.

"How are you going to pay off your debts?"

Eagle shrugged, getting more and more frustrated. "I'll find another way out of them. I just couldn't take everything they had. It's not-"

"Not the Jedi way," Bonga cut in. He sighed pulling himself out of the hood, wiping off his oily hands. "Why must you follow the way of traitors? They were going to take over the galaxy!" White Eagle rolled her eyes letting her anger simmer down.

"Never mind. Just finish what you have to do." White Eagle muttered. A feeling of darkness suddenly sent shivered down her spine. The bounty hunter stood guard at the window, eyes following the storm troopers that were on patrol. The feeling of darkness suddenly intensified, causing the young human to casually rest her hand on her light saber and her spine to straighten. The garage was strangely silent, not even Bonga could be heard. That's when her ears caught the sound of a light saber behind her.

"I do not think we have had the pleasure of meeting Grand Inquisitor." Eagle turned around and faced the male Pau'an. She unclipped her own saber and igniting it, the emerald green blade casting a shadow over the wall. "Funny how I thought Vader would be the one to find me."

"Lord Vader has more important things to do than deal with lowly Jedi." The evil Sith said, preparing himself for battle.

"Like what?" White Eagle quipped. "Being the Emperor's pupped? Vader is as weak and as cowardly as is Sidious. As are you."

"So much talk for such a young and pretty woman." The Inquisitor stated. "Let's see if you can wield that weapon as well as your mouth."

Without hesitation the male Pau'un jumped into battle. White Eagle immediately blocked a blow that was definitely meant for her head. All her old training was coming back to her, her muscles complying and moving like a well-oiled machine.

The bounty hunter spotted an out, so she quickly took it before her window of opportunity closed. Using the force, the young woman pushed the Sith to the wall and bolted to the starfighter. White Eagle had just made it to her ship when the blasters started to fire behind her. She looked around the garage for Bonga and just when she gave up hope, White Eagle spotted him in the _Twilight_ trying to get it started it up.

The two made eye contact and White Eagle nodded, hopping in the cockpit, quickly starting it up. Thankfully Bonga was the best mechanic on Garrel. Her ship started up immediately and once she was off the ground, she followed Bonga and shooting at storm troopers.

Once White Eagle was off Garrel she initiated a hologram of Bonga, but now before a pull in the force had her hesitated over the COM button. A strange feeling came over her but she shook it off as she pressed the COM button.

"White Eagle to Bonga, come in Bonga!" A blue hologram of the Mon Calamari appeared much to the relief to the Bounty hunter.

"Hey you okay?"

" _Yeah just a little shaken up,"_ Bonga admitted, scratching the back of his neck. _"So what do we do now?"_

" _You_ will head to Alderaan. When you get there, contact Senator Organa and tell him you're a friend of White Eagle's."

" _You're not coming?_ " White Eagle shook her head.

"I've got some investigating to do. Tell the esteemed senator that I will rendezvous with the fleet when I am done."

" _Okay be safe,"_ Bonga said before they cut communications and flew separate ways. White Eagle nodded her thanks before shutting all communications and redirecting all power to the main engine and hyper-drive. Once she was cleared for hyper-jump, White Eagle made the jump following the feeling that she hadn't had in a long time.

It took her several jumps to arrive at the destination, as the planet was several kliks outside the Unexplored Region, but things almost immediately went wrong as soon as she was pulled out of hyperspace.

 _I guess I should've paid extra for the repairs,_ she thought as the engine failed. As soon as she passed the atmosphere White Eagle attempted to control her ship but everything was overheating. Red light flashed continuously, alarms band warning sounds blared making it harder and harder to concentrate.

 _The landing gear is unusable…._ Bonga's voice suddenly echoed through her mind. Cursing herself for not remembering, White Eagle aimed her ship far away from any type of civilization as she could, assuming this planet had life. Plunging into a field of trees, White Eagle's starfighter continued to move forward until it came to a sudden stop, causing the bounty hunter's head to slam right into the console. Pain erupted throughout her head as she closed her eyes and slid into unconsciousness.

-Line break-

Location: Stalag 13, Planet Earth

Country: Germany

Year: 1944

Colonel Robert E. Hogan paced around his barracks, bored out of his mind. So far, his team had received no new mission, as apparently the Germans weren't planning anything at the moment. Currently Hogan's team was doing what they normally do when nothing exciting was happening.

Kincheloe was monitoring radio communications, listening for any signs of German activity. Carter and Newkirk were playing a game of gin, with Carter watching Newkirk like a hawk and Lebeau was at the kitchen stove, cooking something up that smelled suspiciously like cooked dirt. All four members of Hogan's team were there and accounted for. It wasn't until nighttime had fallen and roll call about to start that the fun had started. Schultz was walking around counting the POWs when a bright streak in the sky pulled the German Sergeant's attention.

"Reeeport!" A firm but nasally voice called out.

"All prisoners present and accounted for Commandant Klink!" Schultz reported saluting to the thin old man standing at the doorway. Ah Commandant Klink. Overseer of Stalag 13, the only German prison camp that had the record of no successful escapes and the center of the most successful Allied espionage campaign right in the heart of Germany.

The Commandant smiled, his monocle glinting the light of the searchlights on the guard towers.

"Excellent. Now listen up everyone. I will have special visitors front the Gestapo over in a few days so I want you be on your best behavior. And no escaping."

"What's the special occasion Commandant?" Hogan asked hoping to glean information.

"Inspection Colonel Hogan," Klink answered sharply. The small Commandant was about to continue when an explosion suddenly rocked the small POW camp and several trees could be heard splintering. Everyone was silent, no one moving a muscle until all of the sudden an air raid siren started to sound. Calmly and orderly Hogan and his team walked back to their barracks. When the door slammed shut Hogan ordered Carter and Newkirk to see what that crash was.

"You go' it Colonel," Newkirk saluted, climbing down the ladder that led to the secret tunnel.

"We'll be back," Carter informed following the pilot. The two POWs made it to the crater long before the guards from Stalag 13 did. What they found however shocked them. It was a small aircraft of some sort, with blue and grey design and strange faded symbols. There was a clouded little bubble smack dab in the middle of the ship, where the two POW saboteurs presumed the pilot would be. Though the two had no idea what type of person would pilot this type of ship.

Climbing over the ship Carter rapped his knuckles on the opaque glass. The young American could vaguely see a figure but it was difficult to be sure. Newkirk picked up a rock to destroy the glass but Carter stopped him. He spotted a place where the metal met the glass. Carter placed his finger underneath the glass and started to lift the glass up. It worked. The glass bubble lifted up slowly, letting a bunch of smoke filter off. There in the cockpit was a young woman around the age of twenty or so. She had dark brown hair, and tanned skin. The woman was strapped to a chair, her chest falling and rising, giving the illusion of sleeping peacefully however a gash right above her left eye and the half-dried blood that ran down her face told the prisoners of war otherwise.

"She must 'ave 'it her 'ead," Newkirk stated as he opened the girl's eyes. "Give me a 'and Carter." The young American assisted in pulling the woman out of the ship. The woman appeared to be wearing a tight-fitting crème colored shirt with dirt colored leggings and boots completely the ensemble.

"Well at least she's breathing," Carter stated optimistically. The flashing lights and shouting in German told the two they needed to make like a tree and leave but the two POWs covered up the strange aircraft. Newkirk and Carter dashed behind a large bush and watched the krauts run right past them and the ship.

The two made it back to camp, which had calmed down slightly from the excitement. Hogan immediately called on the Wilson as soon as the two men carefully lowered the still unconscious woman down. Currently she lay in Colonel's office with the medic checking her over while Hogan drilled Carter and Newkirk on information.

"There's really nothing to tell you Colonel," Carter stated.

"Yeah," Newkirk agreed. "I mean the only thing to talk about was the ship Gov'ner." That caught the American Colonel's attention.

"What do you mean?"

"Well it was real small like," Newkirk explained drawing a rough sketch on a napkin. "With large wings and small place 'or the pilot."

"Yeah and we also found these in the ship," Carter added laying down the strange objects.

One was a gold and blue cube with weird and unfamiliar runes all over it. A small light source flickered at the middle. Hogan picked it up, trying to see if he could open it but it wouldn't budge. Setting the cube down, Hogan moved on to the next object. It was a silver cylinder with one button. According to Carter the woman had been clutching it so hard they had to pry her hands opened to get it. Hogan handed it to Kinch, who studied it with interest. The African American sergeant must've pressed something, causing an emerald green blade appears, humming slightly. It startled Kinch so much he dropped the weapon. However, when the weapon made impact with the ground, the blade disappeared. The entire room was eerily silent as Lebeau gingerly picked it up as though it was grenade that's pin had been pulled and set it back on the table. The last item on the table seemed to be some type of pistol however they were too afraid to touch it after what happened with the other weapon they weren't quite ready to see what that did.

"So, what do we do now mon Colonel?" Lebeau asked. Hogan was about to answer but soon the medic exited the office, medical supplies in hand.

"Well, how is she?" Hogan asked.

"She has a mild concussion but other than that, she'll be fine," the medic stated kind of casually. "I gave her some pain medicine that'll help her sleep."

"When will she wake up?" Carter asked before Hogan could continue.

The medic shrugged. "Hard to say really. Two to three days maybe at the most."

Hogan nodded, taking in the information before yawning. They still had several hours before early morning roll call and who knew when they would get this much peace and quiet.

"Alright everyone let's get to bed,' Hogan ordered which was answered with groans. "I know but we have a long week ahead."

Soon everyone in Hogan's barracks was sound asleep, except Carter, who lay wide-awake. The young American heard a slight whimpering noise coming from Hogan's room. Silently Carter slipped out of his bunk and into the colonel's office. There the strange woman was tossing and turning with tears streaming down her cheeks as she whimpered something Carter couldn't make out. The young woman's blanket was on the ground and she shivered uncontrollably. The young American picked up the old, patched up quilt and draped it back over the woman, who calmed down almost immediately. Smiling himself Carter turned to leave when he heard something clatter to the floor. Carter turned, spotting the Colonel's favorite (and only) tin metal coffee cup in the middle of the ground, despite it being on the table the last time he saw it. Shrugging Carter carefully made his way back to his bunk closing the door silently.

"What ya up to?" A voice asked causing Carter's heart to jump out of his skin.

"Oh Colonel Hogan," the young American sighed as he spotted the brown leather bomber's jacket. "I was-uh…." Hogan held up an effectively silencing the private.

"It's alright," He said. "Come on let's get back to bed before the two dumkompfs come and do a surprise roll call."

With a nod Sergeant Andrew Carter followed Hogan back to the bunks where they soon fell asleep. White Eagle continued to toss and turn, the nightmare refusing to let her go. As the terrifying dream replayed the bounty hunter didn't noticed that the Force was trying to tell her something….


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Garrel Bounty Hunger White Eagle woke up to a nagging throb in her head. She ignored the pain as she snuggled deeper under the blankets, an early morning chill snaking through the room.

Wait…what?

White Eagle bolted straight up, ignoring the sharp pain that followed. The Bounty hunter looked around the room as she tried to remember what happened after she blacked out. All she could recall was immense pain and hushed voices as she surfaced in and out of consciousness.

The room she was in was nothing special. Just a bed, a desk and a bookshelf. The bed had old but clean blankets on it, the desk only holding a tin cup and the bookshelf had nothing on it. The window was filthy but sunlight filtered through the drawn curtains, as did voices.

White Eagle stood on unsteady feet and started to walk towards the window. Her head was pounding with pain but she managed to make it halfway to the window when the door opened to reveal a young man approximately about the age of twenty or older. He was tall and scrawny looking, wearing a strange brown jacket and with an even stranger hat pressed down against his blonde curly hair. His brown eyes went wide when he spotted the bounty hunter standing in the middle of the room. The two continued to stare, wide eyed until the young man suddenly slammed the door shut. Oookay then…

 _Now's my chance_ , White Eagle thought as she bolted towards the window. The bounty hunter tugged and pulled with all her strength but it wouldn't budge. It was bolted shut. White Eagle scowled at the window, drawing back the curtain. Glancing out the window, the bounty hunter saw that she was in some sort of compound with men wearing different uniforms mingling around, while what Eagle assumed were guards watched them carefully. Clutched in their hands was a strange type of weapon, looking like a primitive version of a blaster riffle. A thought suddenly came to mind. Where did _her_ weapons go? Her light saber? Her blaster? More importantly, her ship? Even more so, the _Holocron_?!

White Eagle was panicking so much that she didn't realize someone else walked into the room until they spoke.

"Nice view huh?" White Eagle jumped, startled and fell into a defensive stance. There was a man with a brown jacket, crème colored khakis and shirt and what looked like a crush cap. The stranger's hair was deep brown and slicked back. His brown eyes darted here and there, taking and assessing everything. It honestly made Eagle nervous.

"Where am I? What am I doing here? How did I get here?" Eagle's rapid-fire questions were stopped as a wave of dizziness washed over her, causing the bounty hunter to prop herself up on a chair. Another followed the man, carrying something with a giant red cross. Eagle's vision blurred as she attempted to hoist herself up which failed. The two men helped Eagle sit on the bed; the man carrying the box knelt and shone a flashlight in her eye. For a second, White Eagle was shocked and shielded her eyes but soon realized the man was a medic and he was checking her responsiveness. Putting her hand down, White Eagle followed procedure. When he was finished the medic turned to brown jacket.

"She should be fine," the medic stated stoically. "Just make sure she gets enough liquids."

"Thanks Wilson," Brown Jacket said as the medic, Wilson, left. Brown Jacket turned to White Eagle. "Now that's over I guess introductions are in order." He held out a hand. "The name's Colonel Robert E. Hogan, senior POW officer here at Stalag 13."

 _POW…. Prisoner of War…. Prisoner….WAR,"_ The words ran circles inside Eagles head. _That must mean I'm in a prison camp…. I need to get out of here._

"Pleasure to meet you Colonel," White Eagle said, straightening her spine. "My name is White Eagle, Bounty Hunter."

Before either could say another word, the door burst open revealing a man wearing a blue turtleneck, blue jacket, pants, black shoes, and a strange blue hat placed precariously on top of his black hair. His nose formed almost something of a beak and in his hands, were a worn deck of…playing cards? Okay. Anyway, he smiled warmly at the now conscious woman then turned to Colonel Hogan with a sneaky sort of smile.

"Klink's looking for you Colonel," he informed before removing his hat. The blue man had an accent similar to one of the Jedi Masters. _Master Kenobi I think_ except his sounded as if he was of lowborn status. The man took White Eagle's hand and planted a kiss on it, shocking the bounty hunter. "'Ello there Love. 'ow ya feeling?" White Eagle smiled, still too shocked to speak.

"Oh, forgive me, uh…"

"Corporal Pe'er Newkirk," He supplied. "At your service."

"Forgive me Corporal, but I'm feeling just fine." White Eagle managed, her tongue feeling quite heavy. It's been a while since she's talked so formal since the people she deals with on a daily basis for the last fifteen years were pirates and low lives.

"So, Klink needs me?" Hogan questioned. Newkirk nodded as he returned to shuffling the deck of cards.

"He said somethin' about preparing for a surprise inspection from the visitin' Gestapo." White Eagle's brow furrowed as the two men continued to talk until the Colonel turned to her, her spine suddenly snapping straight.

Hogan saw this and hesitated for a heartbeat. However, he just shook his head and spoke, "Stay in the barracks." He looked over at Newkirk. "Keep an eye on her will ya?"

Newkirk nodded as Hogan walked out, leaving the two in silence until White Eagle's stomach rumbled. The blue clad Corporal looked over at her and chuckled. White Eagle blushed slightly as she tucked a strand of hair her ear.

"I guess I'm a little hungry."

"Well don't you worry love," Newkirk assured. He placed the deck of cards in his pockets. "We'll get you right as rain. Follow me."

The human Corporal opened the door and walked out, White Eagle hesitantly following him. They entered what looked to be the sleeping quarters for the prisoners, with trunks at the foot of each bed, a table in the middle of the room and a stove. The barracks were all but empty except for the boy White Eagle saw earlier, a dark-skinned man in green clothes and a short man with dark hair and a red shirt at the stove. They all turned towards the two as they walked out and White Eagle sat down at the table ignoring the stars and looks.

Newkirk patted the man at the stove on the shoulder. "This is Lebeau, our own chef here in Barracks 2. He'll fix you up with somethin' nice an' hot."

White Eagle nodded her thanks, her eyes travelling all throughout the building. Although there wasn't much to look at. White Eagle had to admit it was a lot nicer than some of the prison camps during the Clone Wars. She was brought out of her musing when someone snapped his or her fingers in front of her face. It was the man they called Lebeau.

"What would you like to eat mademoiselle?"

"Anything is fine, thank you." The room was plunged into silence, except for the sizzle of the stove. Never the fan of pregnant silence, White Eagle drummed her fingers on the table. Her mind wondered to her friend's fate. Sure Bonga was a mechanic but he can also fight as well as White Eagle herself and considering her past…. the bounty hunger sighed as she shook her head. It wouldn't do any good to wallow in self-pity. She did enough of that fifteen years ago.

Lebeau placed a bowl of soup in front of her, the spicy scent working its way into her nostrils. She smiled her thanks and gulped the soup down. Once it was gone, White Eagle saw all four men stare at her with wide eyes. The bounty hunter handed the now empty bowl back to the short man.

"Thank you," the Garrel bounty hunter thanked. "It's been a while since I had substantial meal."

"De rein," the man said placing the bowl in the sink. White Eagle stood and walked over to one of the bunks, her curiosity wanting to look around. Before anyone could say anything else the door slammed opened to reveal a rather large man with a strange helmet that lowered over his ears. A small grey mustache was the only thing that adorned his chubby, wrinkled face. White Eagle knew enough to realize that this guy was a prison guard and froze. Glancing worriedly at the others, who were also frozen, their eyes as wide as saucers. Very slowly as to not to catch guard's eye, White Eagle moved off the bed and slowly dashed behind the bunk.

Right as the woman ducked behind the false bunk, Schultz turned to him so he forced himself to look at the bumbling guard. Carter forced a relaxed smile, causing Schultz to narrow his eyes.

"What are you up to?" The bulbous guard asked.

"Nothin' Schultzie," Newkirk replied patting him on the shoulder. Schultz in turn pulled away afraid that the British corporal would pickpocket him.

"Commadant Klink has ordered fore very prisoner to remain in the barracks until evening roll call." Schultz said curtly. The door opened to reveal Hogan walking in, an amused smirk plastered on his face.

"Hiya Schultz," Hogan greeted. "What a homecoming!"

Schultz looked uncomfortable as the room full of POWs started crowd him. Finally, he shrugged the prisoners off and started towards he door. Once he was gone everyone waited a few minutes to make sure he was gone before conversing. Hogan turned to Carter.

"Where's White Eagle?"

"Right here Colonel," The woman answered as she climbed on top of the false bunk. Carter inhaled sharply but played it off as a cough. This woman could be a spy for the Germans planted here to get info.

"I see you've met most of my men," Hogan stated as he causally sat down at the table. White Eagle shrugged as she faced him.

"Most of them. I still don't know you," she pointed a gloveless finger at Carter, "Or you." This time she pointed to Kincheloe. "Or that big guard that almost rivals Jabba the Hut."

"Oh, that was our barracks guard Schultz," Hogan stated as he pulled out a cigar that he got from Klink's office. He ignored the strange name. The silence was thick as the woman looked at Carter. His face grew red from embarrassment.

"Oh, Andrew Carter," he stated as they shook hands.

White Eagle nodded and smiled dryly. "Pleasure." She turned towards Kinchloe who was leaning against the bunk.

"Sargent Kinchloe," The radioman greeted. "At your service."

"Well I think that covers everyone," Hogan casually stated, stepping between the two.

"If I may Colonel Hogan, but where is my light saber? I'm going to need it back if I get to go home." White Eagle asked after everyone had settled down. Hogan blinked in confusion as well as everyone else. They had absolutely no idea what light saber was.

"What's a light saber?" Carter asked, voicing everyone's thought.

White Eagle laughed nervously as her eyes darted from one person to another. "Okay guys you got me. Everyone knows what a light saber is."

At their blank stares and quizzical expressions, the young woman dropped her smile, fear and frustration clouding over her face. Suddenly her eyes widened in realization.

"Oh, YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!" She shouted. "Of all the planets in the Outer Rim I had to crash on the most primitive! Why couldn't have crashed on Tatooine? Or Alderaan? Or heck, even the Diagobah system would've worked! But noooo! Fate just _has_ to continue to make my life a living _hell_!"

On 'hell' the woman who was thought to be docile kicked a trunk so hard she dented it and she didn't even look hurt. The room was silent except for White Eagle who took deep, calming breath. Finally, the woman turned towards the prisoners.

"I, uh apologize for my outburst. I guess I need to learn to control my anger just a smidge more."

Before they could say anything else, a hurried knock on the door told them roll call was about to commence. Each man quickly put on a coat, grumbling about the 'bloody Krauts' and how they would love to 'put a bullet between their eyes.' Eagle shook her head as she sat at the table, watching Hogan and his men as they tugged on their coats and jackets. Eagle tilted her head in curiosity. They seemed to be the only ones not complaining as they all seem to silently converse with their eyes. Those five didn't seem to act like prisoners of war. More like spies or something similar. But of course, the bounty hunter couldn't afford to worry about it as she had more important things to think about. Like finding a way off this primitive rock.

With a stern warning from Colonel Hogan to stay in the barracks everyone walked out into the cold. The room was silent and after making sure everyone was gone, White Eagle stood up and walked over to Hogan's quarters. After thirty minutes of searching each space for false bottoms, hidden rooms or loose floorboards as well as the drawers, her search was all around fruitless. She checked every inch of the room, but her each turned up nothing.

Unable to except defeat, Eagle took a deep breath and stretched out the force. It had been a long time since she opened herself to the Force, so it felt strange when she did but it also felt comforting, like having a security blanket returned to her. And since the Kyber Crystal is contained within the holocron, it basically crystalized force energy it shouldn't be too hard to locate. Just like radar, Eagle felt the crystal but it was accompanied by a problem. It came from under her. That was impossible unless there was…White Eagle mentally face-palmed as she walked over to the bunk she hid behind earlier. It looked like nothing out of the ordinary, yet when she dove behind it for a split second she could sense a powerful wave of the force wash over her before it vanished.

Looking at it from different perspectives, Eagle managed to finally pulled it open, revealing a secret tunnel. A ladder led down in the dark, so Eagle would be walking in blind. With a last look at the door and a split-second decision, White Eagle slowly climbed down the ladder.

It took all of five minutes for White Eagle to feel lost. Up until now, she had been using the force to help her to the holocron and ultimately her stuff, using the dirt wall to steady her. After what seemed like forever, White Eagle finally saw a light up ahead. When the bounty hunter arrived, she couldn't help but marvel at the room. It looked like an underground command center, with primitive radios and headsets. In one corner looked like some sort of sewing room, with needles and threads carefully placed next a half-finished uniform. The room was lit with electric lights so when White Eagle decided to explore a little more, she made sure to stay in the light's safe bubble. Deeper in the room, there was some chemical table set up.

That's when she saw them.

White Eagle sighed in relief as she quickly picked up her weapons and the holocron, all three of them looking a little worse for wear but okay. The bounty hunter's fingers hovered over some new scratches on the light saber handle that weren't there before, which meant that they were attempting to take apart the sacred weapon of the Jedi. The holocron and blaster seemed okay. White Eagle broke into a sly smile as she hooked both weapons to her belt. Only with the force could you take apart a light saber or open a holocron. If they had never heard of the force or the Jedi then it would be useless to explain. They probably hadn't even mastered space-travel beyond their own moon, if that.

After White Eagle was finished securing the items on her belt, she continued to explore the small command center. There was a corridor that led past the beds that was completely dark. Unhooking her saber and igniting it, White Eagle followed it until she came to another ladder, leading upwards. White Eagle didn't hesitate to climb up the ladder using her free hand to open the exit. Using the force, the female bounty hunter climbed out of a hole quickly closing the lid (which was disguised as a stump, clever!) and dove behind some bushes right as a searchlight passed over her.

Once the light had passed over, Eagle hesitantly poked her head out of the bushes. She was…outside the wire! That was easy, but going by past experiences, Eagle knew she wasn't out of the woods yet. Turning on her heels, White Eagle took off in a random direction. Step one, find her ship; step two, see If she can get the engine or at least the long-range communications to work and finally, step three, make sure no one spotted her.

-Line break-

Colonel Robert E. Hogan was in the state of near panic. Once roll call was over, Hogan and his men made their way back to the barracks, only to find the girl gone and entrance to the secret tunnel opened. Immediately Hogan ordered Carter to the door as a watch out and Newkirk and Lebeau down into the tunnel to see if they could intercept her, while Hogan and Kincheloe paced. Well Hogan paced, Kinch watched.

They both knew what was at stake if they were caught. The firing squad. That's why they had certain parameters in place to make sure that the Germans didn't sneak a plant in. But this girl didn't seem like the spying type, or at the least the ones that Hogan's men were used to. She acted like a soldier, with a straight posture, attentive eyes, and a commanding presence, but something in her eyes had sent a shiver down the fearless Colonel's spine. A haunted look was imprinted in her eyes, a look that Hogan could only describe as fear when he introduced himself to her as all the color drained from her face. Perhaps she was desperate, looking for a way out while they were at roll call.

Hogan was brought out of his musing when the bunk lifted and Newkirk and Lebeau crawled out. And only them crawled out.

"You didn't find her, did you?" Hogan asked, although he knew the answer already. Lebeau looked down dejectedly.

"Non, mon colonel," the French man answered. The American Colonel sighed heavily through his nose, attempting to calm his racing heart. He couldn't show his panic because they'll panic. The only reason they were calm despite the situation, was that Hogan was calm. Well outwardly anyway.

"But we tracked her to the stump," Newkirk spoke up. "None of the equipment seems to have been tampered with."

"What about the items?"

"Gone too," Newkirk took a breath. "Something tells me that we should let her go."

"But she knows about the tunnels!" Carter argued. He moved away from the door and walked over to where the others were gathered. "What if the Gestapo gets her?"

"We'll have to worry about that later," Hogan interjected. "Right now, we can only hope she can get far enough."

The team nodded simultaneously as they scattered from the circle. Hogan sighed as he walked back into his quarters, plopping down on his bed. There was no way he would get any sleep that night. With all the anxiety he was feeling, it wouldn't be possible to get even a minute of shut eye. A metallic glint caught Hogan's eye as he moved to power off the lights. Under the table there was a strange circular device that wasn't there before. Colonel Hogan scooped down and picked the strange device, turning it in his fingers, brow furrowed in question. Deciding to figure it out later, Hogan sat the device on the desk and laid in bed, staring at the ceiling before his eyes closed in a dreamless sleep…

A week had passed since the incident with the estranged woman and everything had settled down. Hogan and his men were back to causing trouble for the Germans and Klink was still clueless as ever. However, that peacefulness was shattered when General Burkhalter arrived with a certain woman as his captive.

It was around noon when the 'esteemed' general pulled up with a prisoner transport truck behind him. As soon as Hogan's team spotted the car they immediately headed towards Barracks 2. When everyone was accounted for Kinch switched the listening device disguised as a coffee pot on….

Kommadant Klink was currently working on a stack of paper work he had managed to get behind on. It was a stressful job being the colonel in charge of a prison camp but Klink supposed it was better than being on the Russian Front. After Klink started to move automatically through the stack, his pretty blonde secretary, Hilda, poked her head in.

"Sir, General Burkhalter is here," she said. Klink, who was too focused on his work, mumbled something absentmindedly. Hilda, thinking he gave an affirmative, turned to the Gestapo General. She smiled and gestured to the door. General Bulkhalter did his signature entrance (kicking the door open with his foot) and lumbered in, his personal guards dragging a prisoner between them.

Klink dropped his pen and embarrassingly almost soiled himself as General Burkhalter barged in. The aging German colonel saluted the frightening Gestapo with a shaky 'heil Hitler'. The Gestapo general sneered at the lowly Kommadant with a twisted scowl, his eyes showing disgust.

"Klink, you dumpkompf," Burkhalter sneered. At least it seemed that the Gestapo was in a good mood.

"Ah General Burkhalter," Klink welcomed with a shaky voice. His smile was nervous and his voice. "What a pleasant surprise!"

"Shut up!"

"I will shut up," Klink complied plopping down at his desk, shrinking slightly. The Gestapo sat down across from Klink, taking a cigar. Cringing inwardly, Klink bit his tongue as he fought down a biting remark. This man could send him to the Russian Front faster than he could blink. In the silence that followed Klink allowed his eyes to drift over to the prisoner that was slumped between the guards. It was obviously a woman with long dark brown hair, wearing some strange clothes. Her head was slumped over so it was hard to see her face, but Klink assumed she was beautiful.

"General Burkhalter may I ask who our…guest is?" Klink asked cautiously.

Burkhalter blew smoke before answering. "She is an unknown. I have brought her here to extract information I know she has. Unfortunately, she has not cracked. Yet."

Still sucking on his cigar, the evil Gestapo grabbed a fist full of the woman's hair and yanked her head up. Klink didn't even try to hide his grimace as he took in the woman's face. It was a mass of cuts and bruises, her lips split as if someone hit her there. The woman's left eye was swollen shut and dried blood running down from her nose. The one eye that wasn't swollen glared at the Gestapo with more hatred had ever seen. She was breathing through her clenched teeth, either to contain her anger or to make the pain a little more bearable.

"Say hello to Prisoner 4-3A," Burkhalter introduced her, dropping the woman's her. "We captured her on the road to Hammelburg when she attempted to flag down a military convoy. Apparently, this woman doesn't speak one lick of German." Burkhalter started to pace before turning towards the guards. Both snapped to attention. "Take this…. woman to the cooler. Maybe a few hours will convince her to talk."

The guards saluted before dragging the girl towards he solitary confinement. When they opened the door, Colonel Hogan was standing in the doorway with a scowl. Burkhalter narrowed his eyes, causing Hogan to step aside, which was very rare. As Burkhalter and the guards left, Hogan stepped inside to see a slightly fuming Klink, another rare sight.

"Hiya Klink," Hogan greeted.

"Hogan," Klink warned. "I cannot talk to you now."

The German and the American Colonel were both taken about at the Kommandant's tone. Usually it was laced with annoyance but today it seems that Klink was talking slow to avoid yelling. Hogan immediately took advantage of the Kommadant's growing agitation and anger to grab information for the Underground. The American Colonel sat down where General Burkhalter just sat.

"Come on Klink. I just came to talk that's all."

Kommadant Klink sighed, letting himself deflate. "Forgive me Hogan. It's just that…seeing Burkhalter and what he was doing to that poor woman has me seething."

"Ah." Hogan let the man continue while a plan was formulating at the same time.

"Now I'm all for the Fatherland. But that woman obviously has no information we can use. She probably doesn't know about the war."

 _You don't say,_ Hogan thought as Klink continued.

"I just wish I could do something about it," the German Colonel mused. Hogan took that as his chance.

"Well you could just report him to the Offices of Unfair Treatment." Hogan lied. The American cringed inwardly as it wasn't his best lie, but Klink's eyes seemed to light up.

"Oh, do you really think they could help?" Klink asked as he decided on it.

"Sure," Hogan insisted enthusiastically. "Just write to them, and if they think he needs to be punished they'll write back with orders from the highest-ranking officer."

Klink immediately stood up from his desk and grabbed Hogan's arm, moving him towards the door.

"Hogan, you are a _genius_!" The German said with renewed energy. "I will write to the Offices of Unfair Treatment immediately. Thank you!"

With that Klink pushed the American Colonel out and slammed the door in his face, leaving a slightly stunned Hogan to stare at the door.

Okay then….


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

White Eagle grunted as the guards none too gently tossed her into the cell. She got to her feet immediately and made to rushed them but they slammed the door on her. The bounty hunter hit the door, which aggravated her wounds. The brunette slowly peeled herself off the floor and looked around at her new (hopefully, temporary) living quarters.

The room was empty of furniture except for a filthy cot. There were strands of hay scattered on the filthy floor, and a window near the ceiling filtered the sun light through, lighting the room very lightly. From the looks of the door that she could only see with her good eye the door was reinforced and had four guards posted outside if what she was feeling through the Force was correct. This was a solitary cell, reserved only for prisoners of high suspicion or those that cause trouble for the commander in charge.

 _Very primitive indeed_ , she thought as she plopped down on the cot. Her face ached, throbbing with pain every so often. Her chest hurt slightly but not as much as her face. The ride with General Body Fat wasn't a very smooth one. He would be asking questions that she answered with silence. There was an unlawful amount of anger hidden behind the rolls on his stomach and face. Forget about the barracks guard, this guy could totally rival Jabba the Hutt.

White Eagle shot up on the cot when the door opened. She glared at the door as General Body Fat himself walked through followed by two more guards.

"Hello fraülein," he greeted. The bounty hunter winced as the slimy tone of his voice wrapped itself around her like a snake. She hated snakes. There were snakes that took control of her government and destroyed her family. The man gestured to the guards beside him. "These men are here to take you an interrogation room. Corporate and we will be gentle. Do not…. well we don't want a repeat of the ride here. Now do we?"

White Eagle didn't say anything as the men picked her up and basically dragged her to the interrogation room. On the way there, they had to go through the camp. Many men started and gawked at the injured woman being dragged by agents to the interrogation room. Once they were there, the guards threw her into a chair while General Body Fat walked around her like a buzzard circling its prey.

"I grow tired of your silence fraülein," General Body Fat informed her. "I know that you are working for the Allies. There have been several attempts to track down and destroy any espionage campaigns in all of the prison camps in Germany. So far, every attempt to root out anything in _this_ camp has been terminated. You know something about this camp. This is where you came from. Now tell me: who are your accomplices?"

The Bounty hunter found the table very interesting, which seemed to cause General Body Fat to become angrier. He slammed his chubby fist on the table, not even receiving a flinch from the mysterious brunette.

"Let's play a game," The man suddenly said. He reached into his coat and pulled out a primitive pistol. The fat general opened the barrel up and emptied it of bullets. With his fat, chubby, sausage fingers General Rolls picked up one lone bullet and placed it in the barrel. He spun the barrel and stopped it.

"The Russians have an…interesting game of chance." The man started. "A group of five men place a single round in a revolver. One person spins the revolver and if it lands on him, he holds it up to his head and pulls the trigger. There will only be one winner in a game of chance, which the prize is their life. We'll now play it. Only we will make a slight tweak to the rules. Tell me who your informants are, or we will leave your life up to chance."

The man pressed the gun to her head and cocked it. "Everyone has their limits fraülein. Tell me." The man pulled the trigger. White Eagle inwardly sighed as she realized that was a blank. "One. Four more to go. Shall we tempt fate a little more?"

Two more blank shots later and General Body Fat was getting angrier and more frustrated. White Eagle had taken count of the empty shots and if her math was correct, she had two more chances. The bounty hunter didn't want to rat out Colonel Hogan and his men but she didn't want to die. She felt that there was something she was destined to do but…

One more blank shot. The next one was going to be the one that ended her life. She closed her eyes to keep the tears from flowing as the sound of a trigger being cocking could be heard. But before the bullet could grace her skull, the door opened suddenly. It was a minor miracle that the general didn't pull the trigger when the door flew open. Two people walked in: the chubby barracks guard and a pencil thin old dude with a monocle. In the pencil thin guy's hand, there was a piece of paper ( _this is a very primitive world_ , White Eagle thought) that looked very official.

"General Burkhalter you will cease this at once," the old guy ordered.

"Klink what are you doing?" General Burkhalter demanded. He looked like he was about to explode. White Eagle couldn't help but let a giggle out as she remembered something from her past. Burkhalter grabbed her hair and slammed her down into the table. Pain erupted from her face as her nose started to bleed. She quickly pressed her hand against her nose to stem the bleeding.

"General!" Klink shouted his face turning beet red. The bounty hunter would've laughed harder had her nose not been bleeding and she was in immense pain. "I said that is enough! You will release this woman into my care or else I will report you."

General Burkhalter scowled but reluctantly left. Klink turned to the chubby guard, ordering him to find Hogan and a medic. White Eagle tried to stand but her side erupted in fire. The pain was so intense that her vision danced with black spots and her head swam. She didn't notice herself swaying until her legs couldn't hold her. She collapsed and fell into darkness.

The next time White Eagle opened her eyes; she was lying on a bed with Wilson and Hogan invading her personal space bubble.

"Welcome back to the land of the living," Hogan greeted when he saw she was scowling at him. "You seemed tougher than you look."

"That comes with being a bounty hunter," Eagle informed the colonel. She slowly sat up but Wilson pushed her back down.

"None of that. You have a severe concussion with a broken rib. Thankfully it didn't puncture anything, important or otherwise." He chuckled slightly. "How on earth did you piss off General Burkhalter off so bad?"

"Is that his name?" White Eagle smirked mischievously. "Silence. The more you piss someone off, the more you learn about them."

"And what did you learn about Burkhalter?" Hogan asked with a cocked eyebrow.

"His voice gets higher and his face gets redder when he gets mad," White Eagle answered. She shrugged. "That and he can get extremely violent when his questions go unanswered."

Hogan chuckled. "I could've told you that." He patted White Eagle's leg. "Klink has ordered for you to stay in the infirmary until you get better. Then he'll decide what to do with you."

"Please tell me that I'm not going to get stuck with General Body Fat again." That caused both medic and colonel to near about roll on the floor laughing at her nickname. White Eagle raised an eyebrow, waiting for the two men to collect themselves before she reiterated her plea.

"Don't worry," Hogan assured. "Commadant Klink has made sure that 'General Body Fat' will be reprimanded for severely injuring a woman but they have to keep you here under suspicion."

"Hm. Figured as much," White Eagle shrugged. She turned to the medic, who was packing up his supplies. Her grip wrapped around her weapons and the holocron, which the guards were stupid enough to not to take. Those were her only assurance during her few days of captivity. She had planned on using her lightsaber at one point but never got the chance.

"We'll be back for a visit," Hogan said as the two were leaving. "Don't move a muscle. I don't think we can spring you from any prison now."

White Eagle nodded. The bounty hunter reclined in her bed, hoping to have a peaceful night's (or whatever time it was) rest. But she couldn't close her eye. Her adrenaline was going though she didn't know why it was pumping through her veins. It must've been every wound throbbing that kept her awake and alert, ready to pounce on anything that her mind processed as a threat. The door opened and the barracks guard, Schultz if she remembered, walked in carrying a tray of food. Eagle's stomach growled angrily as the smell wafted from the tray of assorted goodies.

 _"Guten tag fraülein,"_ the man greeted. He carefully set the tray on the bedside table and helped White Eagle get propped up. The bounty hunter nodded her thanks as the guard placed the tray on her lap, along with a fork and knife, though they were dull. Eagle didn't hesitate to dig into her meal in silence. She listened to the guard babble on about how she reminded him of his eldest granddaughter, how the camp cook, Lebeau, cooked her a traditional German meal, and snuck a piece of chocolate between the bread and slab of meat. White Eagle eagerly dug the chocolate out and slowly savored the sweet treat. Oh, how long had it been since she last tasted chocolate? Or felt it the smoothness of it on her tongue?

 _Too long,_ her taste buds replied. Since the Empire took over, everything rose in price, from the simplest trinkets to the finest thing you could buy. To pay for their inevitable war against insurgents, they had said. But White Eagle knew that the extreme taxes were to pay for the Emperor's and his puppets extravagant living.

"So, what is your name fraülein?" The guard asked bringing the bounty hunter out of her thoughts.

Smiling sincerely, the bounty hunter answered, "Solstice Winters. At your service."

"Oh, what a lovely name!" the man complemented. White Eagle smiled though the name felt foreign on her tongue. It's been years since she used her real name, the name her parents gave her at her birth…. right before the Jedi came and took her away. Schultz seemed to sense that she was in a down casted mood, as he slowly removed her tray and left, ordering her to get some rest. White Eagle moved a little in order to get comfortable. She laid her head on the pillow, her full belly weighing her down and ordering her to close her eyes for some rest. She complied with her body's order, her breathing leveling out. Soon White Eagle aka Solstice Winters fell into a deep sleep.

-Line break-

Kincheloe shut off the radio when he was sure the girl had fallen asleep. He had been listening in on the conversation just in case Burkhalter decided to go in for bedside interrogation. But instead it was Schultz. The bumbling barracks guard had gotten the young girl to eat the food Lebaeu had made, even eat the chocolate that the French man used to bribe the guards. Schultz had the girl reveal her name.

Solstice Winters. Kincheloe smiled slightly to himself as he made his way up to the barracks. Like Schultz said, what a lovely name. It rolled off the tongue easily and it had a lovely ring to it. A lovely name to fit a lovely woman. That thought begged the question that was nagging everyone else: what was a woman like her doing in the middle of Germany during the Second World War? And why was she flying a strange plane?

Her 'plane' was currently down where they kept all the other snagged planes and other heavy artillery. None of the mechanics wanted to touch it for fear of something planted in it or going off. So, they would have to wait and see if Klink would assign the girl a barracks before the espionage team could ask her. The radioman knocked three times on the bottom of the false bunk. The false bunk opened up, Carter reaching down to help the dark-skinned man up.

"Thanks," the older gentleman said to the younger one. The boy smiled before stalking off somewhere. Newkirk, Lebeau, and Hogan were all there with Carter being the lookout for guards.

"Well I got the girl's name," Kincheloe announced. All eyes turned to him. "Her name is Solstice Winters. Ran her name by the Underground but nothing came up."

"So is she a solo?" Hogan asked. They rarely came by people who had taken to spying on the Krauts into their own hands. If this girl was a solo spy then there was a chance that was one in one million.

"Probably's a test pilot," Newkirk theorized. "But lost her way. Though why anyone would use a _woman_ for a test pilot, that's a guess for you gov'."

Hogan was silent as he contemplated the theories. Kinch could almost see the wheels turning in the coffee-eyed colonel. Before he could say anything, Carter shouted, "Schultz is coming!"

Everyone scattered and began to do any tasks they could pick up. Newkirk started to shuffle a deck of playing cards, Lebeau pulled out some spices and threw them on a stove, Carter started to whittle some wood with a dull knife, and Kinch laid down on the bunk like he was taking a nap. There was a knock on the door before the large guard barged in causing everyone to jump. The bushy mustache guard scowled as he scanned the room, his beady eyes falling on Colonel Hogan.

"Colonel Hogan, the Kommadant needs to see you," Schultz informed. Kincheloe narrowed his eyes at the tone of voice their barracks guard used. Gone were the hilarious pleadings for Hogan and his men to stop their insistent begging and bombarding Schultz for bribes. He was serious which was very unlike Schultz.

"Somethin' up Schultz?" Hogan asked who had also picked up Schultz tone of voice.

"I don't want to repeat myself Colonel," Schultz practically begged. "Pulease!"

With that he turned on his heels and left, slamming the door harshly. The men were left in stunned silence before Hogan hesitantly followed. Once the door was closed, Kincheloe bolted to Hogan's office, shutting the door once everyone was in. He walked over to the coffee pot and switched it on, the room completely silent as they listened.

"I want to assign the girl a barrack," Klink announced as soon as Hogan entered his office. The German officer was staring at nothing blankly, his lips pursed in deep concentration and his eyes held sadness.

Hogan picked all this up immediately when he entered the room. "Klink? Is something wrong?"

"I have been speaking with your medic," the German colonel informed as he gestured to the seat in front of him. Hogan swiftly took it, watching and listening as the man continued. "He had informed me that the girl would heal perfectly and completely in a few days. As soon as the girl is healed I want her assigned to a barrack."

"Really? Why's that?"

"We- _I_ cannot let that girl back into the hands of the Gestapo. Those…. monsters hurt an innocent woman." He sighed heavily. "While we cannot let her go home, we can at least make her stay here at Stalag 13 a little comfortable."

"Well that's going to be a little hard in a camp full of men," Hogan commented. He was genuinely surprised at Klink's sympathy and kindness. The German colonel often spoke harshly of the German Secret Police but never this harshly.

Klink's eyes seemed to light up with a thought. "Hogan, could you and your men possibly build a private barrack?"

"For the woman?"

"No for my dog," Klink answered sarcastically before yelling, "Of course for the woman!" He sighed before stating a little more calmly, "Hogan, I am an officer of the Third Reich. You are an officer of the Allied soldiers. I would never beg you for anything. However, this woman was mistreated poorly and I feel that I have to make it up to her. Please, do this for me. I will give you anything within your boundaries as a prisoner of war."

Hogan seemed to weigh his options, carefully making sure he wasn't falling into a trap. He searched Klink's face for any sign of trickery. But, surprisingly, he didn't find anything. Finally, he sighed heavily, his own plan forming in mind.

"Okay," he relented. Klink's eyes lit up in joy and he started to clap his hands.

"Oh, thank you Hogan! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" he repeated.

Hogan held up his hand to cease the thanking. It made him feel uncomfortable. "What do you need me to do?"

"Gather all the volunteers you can," Klink ordered as he moved quickly. "I'll get the necessary equipment and tools. If anyone asks, it's for a new project which was commissioned by the Führer."

He ushered Hogan out of the office quickly. Before anything else could be said the German colonel shoved the American Colonel out the door and slammed it in his face. Helga stood up and batted her eyelashes, running her hands up and down the zipper of his bomber jacket.

"You weren't naughty were you Hogan?" she asked.

"No," He replied, pushing the saucy secretary away. He couldn't afford to get distracted. Hogan briskly walked back towards Barracks 2, ignoring the calls from the other prisoners. He opened the door and was immediately bombarded with questions.

 _Why does Klink want us to build Solstice a private barracks?_

 _Does he have another motive?_

 _Is he doing this for Burkhalter?_

 _What will happen to Solstice?_

 _Will we officially introduce her to our operation?_

Hogan had to yell to get the others to shut it. "I don't know why Klink suddenly went all saint on the girl but I do know that we have to comply."

"WHAT?" They all simultaneously yelled.

"If we do this, then we can get more information from her." Hogan explained. The other soldiers nodded in agreement. They gathered around their Senior POW Officer as he laid down a large piece of paper on the table. Hogan started to draw a rough diagram of a barracks on the paper.

"Alright here's the plan," He announced. "I want a secret passageway that connects from Solstice's barrack to ours. Don't announce the location of the entrance to her; I want to see her try and find it herself. Understood?"

The others nodded in agreement as they tossed out suggestions of their own. They hid the plans for the secret tunnel and drew up another one before Schultz arrived to bring them to the plot of land for the young woman's barrack. The entire POW group of Stalag 13 had gathered in the courtyard, eagerly waiting instructions. After Klink had given a short speech, the group of prisoners got to work. They got halfway done when it suddenly started to pour. The prisoners had to halt their work as they scrambled back to their barracks.

In Barracks 2, Carter sat twiddling his thumbs as he listened to the rain fall on the tin roof. The prisoners' progress on Solstice's barrack was astonishing, considering that they literally just started on that day. Of course, the unexpected shower had halted the progress for a while, but they would get finished probably within the next two days if that. The young man had briefly wondered who Solstice was truly. Sure, they had assumed she was a pilot, but Hogan said that Solstice she hinted that she was a bounty hunter. How could a young woman like her be a bounty hunter?

 _What was her backstory?_ Carter asked himself as he started to doze. The rain had picked up as well as the wind. It was howling like a wolf. The young American hoped that White Eag- _Solstice_ was fine. Earlier that day, when Klink had summoned Olson and Hogan, Carter saw the American Colonel carefully carrying the young girl to the infirmary.

The Colonel had assured Carter that the girl was fine and that all she had was some minor injuries, courtesy of General Albert Burkhalter. Oh, Carter was just simmering in anger though he didn't know why. Sure, the girl wasn't bad looking-hell she was stunning with brown hair that seemed to be softer than a kitten's butt, blue eyes that seemed to be chipped straight from the sky, and skin that seemed to resemble toast that had been toasted just right.

Carter's eyes were just about to close when there was a knocking on the false bunk. Stiffly he rose and opened the bunk, smiling at Kinchloe as he rose up from the underground communications room. The African American smiled slightly in thanks at the young officer before stepping into the room. Carter closed the false bunk before joining his dark-skinned friend as he headed towards Colonel Hogan's office.

"He's not there," Newkirk answered.

"Where is he?" Carter asked.

The British pilot shrugged. "Probably the medical bay. He's most likely questioning our little bird."

"Let's go over this again shall we?" Hogan asked frustrated. He and Lebeau were in the medbay, trying to get answers from Solstice. She seemed pretty shocked that they knew her real name but she quickly covered it up. She confirmed her name was Solstice Winters but that was as far as they got with the answers. No matter how many times he had asked, nicely or otherwise, Solstice had remained silent and tight lipped.

"I told you Colonel," Solstice repeated. "I cannot tell you anything. My secrets are dangerous to anyone here."

"Are you a test pilot of some sort mademoiselle?" Louis asked.

"No," She answered sharply. "And if you damage my ship, I'll have your heads."

"And…. uh what about these?" Hogan asked making to grab the sword hilts.

"Those? They're nothing, just some relics from fifteen years ago."

Both POWs huffed in frustration when the medical bay returned to silence. Solstice's gaze, her silent dare to them to continue the question, pierced Hogan's very soul. Before Hogan could ask another question, Commandant Klink walked in, his eyes twinkling with sympathy. Hogan and Lebeau stood and silently left the German Colonel and the mysterious woman alone. Solstice gave a hard glare at the Colonel, though she noticed his gaze was soft.

"How are you doing Fraülein?" The Colonel asked.

"Fine," Solstice answered sharply. If she wanted to get questioned repeatedly she would've gone back in time and got captured by the Separatists. Though she was happy that General Body Fat wasn't here to give her another game of chance again.

"Listen my dear, I know that you might feel uncomfortable here-"

"No duh Sherlock Holmes," Solstice interrupted irately. She was getting fed up with being treated as a victim. She didn't get that luxury during the end of the Republic and she sure as hell wasn't going to take it now.

"Listen, I know you are trying to be nice and I appreciate that. Not many people have showed me this kind of kindness in fifteen years but it's very unnecessary. I've learned how to take care of myself and I don't need anyone sticking their noses where they are not wanted."

Klink blinked several times in shock when the young girl took a deep breath to simmer the last bit of her rant. He had never heard a woman speak her mind so adamantly in his entire life. She seemed passionate about not getting help, which raised more questions about her, but Klink quickly shushed them as he straightened his spine. Regardless if this woman wanted help or not, Klink was going to give it to her.

"I have commissioned the prisoners of this camp and built you a private barrack. It should be done in a day or so, so you'll have to sleep in the medical facilities here until it is done."

"Will I be able to go home?" White Eagle asked. The bounty hunter noticed how the man hesitated, like he was trying to placate her but was afraid to anger her.

"I'm sorry my dear, but I cannot allow you to leave." He finally said slowly. White Eagle blinked the tears away as her heart plummeted to her feet. The flame of hope that had sparked when Hogan had assured her she was getting out was suddenly snuffed out. Now there was a possibility that she would have to find her ship and then sneak out by herself. How the hell was she supposed to do that quietly? That was the point of sneaking out…. for it to be quiet.

White Eagle sighed before speaking, "Okay. What is the prisoner schedule?"  
"Roll call is at dawn, as well as breakfast. You must stay where the guards can see you. Lunch is at noon and supper and evening roll call is at dusk. You must be present for everything. Any disciplinary actions will result in punished according to the action."

"So, I'm guess the solitary confinement cell is one of the many punishments?" White Eagle asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Yes," Klink answered, hesitant again. "But that is only for severe disciplinary actions."

"Okay." White Eagle stood and stretched, the wound on her side stinging suddenly but she ignored it. If she was going to get her own little place in this shithole of a POW camp and escape, then she needed to at least pretend that she was in tip-top shape to do so. "So, what do I need to do?"

A few days later, Solstice moved in to her lone barrack, which had just been completed. It took longer than Commandant Klink anticipated mainly because of the rain that continued to pour over the prisoner camp every second for the past day or so, stopping only for an hour. It was only during those few hours when the rain stopped that the men could work. Solstice wanted help the men out since the barracks were for her, but Wilson the medic ordered to stay inside and get her strength back up, keeping a rather close eye on her in case she tried to sneak off.

Staying inside for the entirety of the day with only Wilson and Commandant Klink for occasional company drove White Eagle up the walls.

Even though in her own galaxy when she was on the run, White Eagle at least had some company in an astromech she kept on occasion, or Bongo, or Hera or someone to talk to. Here on this planet…she had no one. So, when she could, White Eagle levitated one of the metal cups they gave her during her meals with the Force. It had been several years since she actively used her powers that had been bestowed on her by the gods.

Despite being only a little girl no more than four, White Eagle still remembered with clarity the day the Jedi came to her. If her memory served her correctly, it was Master Plo Koon who came to her planet. He and other members of the council had a collective force vision about a force sensitive child on her planet. So, he came and instructed that all the children under the age of ten be lined up. The Kel Dor male went down the line, hovering his hand over the young one's heads until it landed on Solstice. His eyebrow ridges scrunched up before leaving the Town Hall suddenly, even though he still had at least five children left to test. That night, while Solstice was having supper with her family, Plo Koon arrived to take her away.

Solstice held out her hand and the cup landed in her palm. She had been taught that her powers were to be used for good. But she had also been taught that her powers would overtake her if she let it consume her. Like Count Dooku…. like Sidious. Without trying or thinking, Solstice's fingers wrapped around the cup, tightening ever so slightly, making a dent in the metal cup ever so slightly. Her sensitivity to the Force only got stronger over the years since she had a lot of time to herself.

Placing the cup on the nightstand beside her, Solstice stood and made her way to the window. She stared at the completed barracks with an unmoving expression. Tomorrow she would move in with what little belongings she had. And tomorrow…she would try and get a message out to Bonga. Hopefully, the Mon Calamari got to Alderaan, got to Senator Organa and got protection from the ever-growing rebellion. And hopefully, if she got a powerful enough signal, White Eagle would be able to leave this planet.

The door opened behind her. White Eagle turned her head slightly and saw that it was Andrew Carter. The young man smiled brightly when he entered, but White Eagle returned her attention to the outside. Carter reminded Eagle of the rookie clones or Padawans that would have this glorified dream of battle and a twisted vision that they would be a war hero. White Eagle knew it would be their first battle before they finally believed the horrors they heard from the older Jedi.

"What do you want?" She asked coldly.

"Your barrack is ready. You should be allowed to move in tomorrow."

She barely heard what the boy said. Something outside caught her attention. It looked like a person dressed in robes of a Jedi. She blinked and the figure vanished. Her heart dropped to her feet as she acknowledged the boy. She muttered her thanks before sighing quietly to herself. Solstice heard the door close behind her before she let her tears fall.

Hopefully, things won't get too out of hand before she could escape.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Solstice Winters got into the swing of things in no time. Like the prison camps from the galactic civil war, it was typical. Wake up at the crack of dawn and stand out in the cold for roll call, scatter around for a couple of hours or do whatever chore they assigned to you, eat a pathetic excuse they called lunch, mingle with the others, eat an even worse excuse they called supper, stand in the cold for evening roll call, go to bed, wash, rinse and repeat. From what she felt through the Force, every man in the prison camp, both prisoners and guards, were surprised to see her stand at attention and stare straight ahead during roll call.

Most of the time, Solstice stayed in her barracks, away from the men that catcalled her. She would meditate in the middle of her barracks until the guards would come looking for her. That was the only thing that was different from the Separatists war camps. The Separatists were hard labor camps where the death toll was a hundred prisoners a day and they wanted the prisoners where the guards could see them. Here, however, the prisoners were not under fed (even if the food was slightly inedible) and not overworked at all. They had freedom in this camp, even though it was little.

Hogan and his men were still persistent in their question as well as Commandant Klink. They would either stop by before bedtime or they would corner her in the courtyard. Depending on the time of day of course. The only one who didn't constantly try and ask her questions were Andrew, though he preferred to be called Carter. He was the only one who tried to get to know her without having any ulterior motives.

They would take long walks around the compound when the sun was out and the days were warm. Unfortunately, those days were few and far between now that winter was draping its arms over the country. Carter was nice enough to lend Solstice one of his jackets. Though she was grateful for it, the jacket did little to beat back the cold. So, she stayed indoors, by the stove that kept her barracks warm.

Her search for her starfighter was starting to slow even before it began with the coming winter. Even though she needed to get in contact with the rebellion and get off this planet, deep in her soul she knew that even if she found it there wouldn't be any way of it using it since the winter and the snow would rust it completely. And there was no way she could fix it with the minimum amount of supplies she had.

Solstice paced around in her barracks, bored out of her mind. The snow had come early, and blizzard was raging outside. All the men, both guards and prisoners, were stuck inside. The bounty hunter sighed as she drew the curtains closed. She needed to watch the holocron, to replay that one little video that recorded by the one of the few Council members that survived the massacre.

She sat on the ground in a meditative position. The holocron rested on the shabby desk but the bounty hunter called it over using the force. The cube floated over to her. She traced the golden diamonds on the sides of the holographic chronicle. This was the only thing that Solstice was able to get out once the massacre started. She had run all the way through the temple, warning others of the attack. Eventually she ended up in the library, where she was cornered until Madame Jocasta helped her and the holocron escape.

Slowly Solstice opened up to the force and the holocron opened up. The corners slowly detached from the cube. Blue light filled the barracks until the holographic image of Master Kenobi was showing. Solstice still had her eyes closed when he started to speak.

 _"This is Master Obi Wan Kenobi. I regret to report that both our Jedi Order and the Republic have fallen with the dark shadow of the Empire rising to take their place. This message is a warning and a reminder for any surviving Jedi. Trust in The Force. Do not return to the Temple…that time has passed. And our future is uncertain. We will each be challenged. Our trust. Our faith. Our friendships. But we must persevere. And in time, a new hope will emerge. May the Force be with you, always."_

The message ended and the light died down. Ever since the massacre and ever since she decided to become a bounty hunter, Solstice had taken a vow to repress her force sensitivity, so that she could forget her friends and all that happened. But now…. the former Padawan of the Jedi Order saw the errors of her way. All she did was mock their memory.

A knock at the door prompted her to dash the tears away and stuff the holocron underneath the pillow. She dusted off her pants, making her way to the door as she did. Solstice decided to peek through the curtains just in case it was one of those men that desperately craved the touch of a woman. She sighed in relief when she saw Carter standing in the snow.

"Carter?" she asked when she opened the door. The blonde-haired man smiled goofily as Solstice gestured for him to enter. "Come in, come in! It's too cold to be outside."

"Thanks a lot." The young man entered gratefully. He stomped his feet on the mat to clear it of the snow, dusting off the snow on his shoulders. The boy glanced around the barracks as if hoping to spot someone or something.

"You came here for something?" Solstice asked, flopping on her rickety bed.

"Uh I was just making sure that you were alright," he stuttered.

"I have a roof over my head, and although it is meager, I have warm food in my belly." Solstice sighed. "It's more than I had in fifteen years, believe me."

"What happened fifteen years ago?" Carter asked. Then he hurriedly added, "If you don't mind talking about it."

Solstice sighed sadly again and allowed herself a dry smile. God it's been so long since she truly smiled. "It's fine Carter. It's just that I've had a hard time trusting people. Just something I learned the hard way since becoming a bounty hunter. Too many people can hurt you if they can get you to trust them."

"It's been hard for you huh?" Carter asked. Solstice nodded.

"Fifteen years of being on the run, watching the people you love die, and trying not to stay in place too long…. it can be rather hard on your soul."

"So…what happened?" Carter pressed gently. This time, Solstice couldn't keep the tears from falling. She quickly wiped them away before returning her attention to the native sitting on her bed.

"Ever since I could remember," she started slowly, "I had been a part of this organization that has kept the peace for thousands of years. But, all of that, even the legacy that it had built for itself, vanished one night in a puff of smoke. About fifteen years ago, this order was fighting a civil war. We were nearing the end of it when…." Solstice's lip quivered and tears continued to fall as she pushed through the sadness, "One night, the one person that we put most of our faith in, the one person we put up on a pedestal…. He took the army that was fighting by our side and slaughtered most of my people. I was only ten years old, and I barely escaped.

"Oh, it must've been hard."

"It was. Every year, on the anniversary of the massacre, I drink myself into a daze. It's very hard to stay sober on a day like that. Once you see something like that…it messes you up."

Carter was nodding silently, like he knew what she was talking about. The bounty hunter figured that since there was war going on, the young man saw many of his friends and brothers in arm fall. Just like she did.

"How did you become a bounty hunter?"

Solstice chuckled drily. "I wasn't going to beg on the streets. I just took the least dangerous job that I could find. Although being a person that is high on the most wanted list is the only thing that I don't like." Carter was silent, but Solstice knew what he was thinking, "Go ahead and ask Carter. These questions don't bother me, I assure you. In fact, it feels good since I've bottled up inside me for so long."

"Okay," Carter chuckled as he thought about a question. "Uh, how about…. how did you get your name 'White Eagle'?"

"That's an easy one," Solstice fell back on the bed. "My squadron was called the White Eagles. I had to kill most of them when they betrayed me but I never forgot them. They were more than just soldiers to me. They were, family; the brothers I never had."

Carter fell on his back next to Solstice and stared up at the ceiling. The snow was continuing to fall hard. The fire in her stove was starting to die down, leaving a chill in the barracks. Solstice shivered, her filthy flight suit doing nothing to keep it out, even though it had been designed to keep out the chill of the cold. She curled up next to Carter, since he was the only piece of warmth other than the blankets and both were lying on top of them.

The blonde hair soldier froze when the woman they had rescued several days ago curled up against him. She placed her head on his chest, just over his heart as if she was listening to his heartbeat. Andrew didn't want to move; since this was the calmest he had ever seen Solstice. She was sleeping peacefully, her face so serene someone could've mistaken her for a sleeping angel.

Slowly as possible, Carter moved off the bed and made his way to the secret entrance. He stopped halfway before turning to look at the sleeping figure. The young American softly draped a blanket over her before leaving the barracks via the secret tunnel. He left it open just a crack so that she could find it.

Solstice woke up an hour later feeling really cold. She made to snuggle up closer to Carter, but only found an empty bed. One the first jobs she had taken that she hadn't told Carter about was being an escort. It was a year after that; she switched her career to bounty hunter. Every morning after a job, she would wake up in an empty bed. Alone. It nearly killed Solstice doing that just to make a living, so she decided to switch.

Waking up alone kind of hurt a little bit. But as Solstice realized, it was almost time for roll call and Klink would punish the young man if he was caught in her barracks. But how would he get past the guards posted at the door? Solstice shivered as she looked around the room. It was too cold. There weren't any cracks in the floor, no holes in the ceiling, all the windows and the door were closed tightly, the fire, despite dying, was still blazing hot.

So where was that chill coming from?

That's when Solstice spotted the opened floorboard. It was only opened a crack, which was hard to see if you knew what to look for. Solstice placed her hand over the crack. Her eyes narrowed, then widened in shock when she felt a rush of cold, chilly air. She dug her nails underneath the crack before lifting it up.

It looked like a shaft that led down into the darkness. There was a ladder that looked brand new, leading down. Solstice stood, grabbing her light saber before igniting it and lowering it down. The tunnel was deeper than the bounty hunter could see. From the looks of everything, the walls were smooth and compacted. It looked freshly dug out.

Solstice took the chance and hopped down into the darkness. Her light saber gave her most of the light. There were two choices she could take. One was go down the tunnel to see where it leads, taking a chance. Or she could go back up to the barracks and wait for roll call, which, if her internal clock was correct, should be in about two hours. Her curiosity was pulling her down the tunnel. That's when she heard the voices.

She took off, not thinking twice about her decision. She ran until she saw the soft glow of an electric light bulb. Solstice switched her saber off and clicked it on her belt. The bounty hunter saw the outlines of several of the men from around the camp, such as Colonel Hogan, Corporal Newkirk, Sergeant Kinchloe, and Carter. She stopped at the line where the shadows met the light. And waited.

"So what additional information do we have on Solstice?" Hogan asked.

"Well, she was a part of this order that was massacred fifteen years ago. She fought in a war but she was only ten years at the time."

"What kind of bloody order is this if it makes children fight in war?" Newkirk demanded, taking a huff of the cigarette.

"An order that I was loyal to since it was the only thing I've only ever known," Solstice decided to speak up. She could take the other planets talking bad about the order, but not these people. Not when they didn't know what was done to the children during the massacre, and how the government betrayed it. The bounty hunter shot Carter a look of betrayal. How could she be so blind? How could the one person she trusted in this hellhole betray her like that, telling the things that she said in confidence to his boss? Carter, wisely, looked rather guilty.

"So, this is your little secret huh? An espionage campaign right in the heart of your enemy's territory." She took a breath. "I'll admit that is ingenious. I don't think that even Master Kenobi could've thought about that."

"How'd you get down here?" Hogan asked.

"With all due respect, playing dumb won't work Colonel. It doesn't suit you. I've been at this manipulation and deceptive game since I was ten. And I've been on the run for fifteen years, having to use the lessons I learned in war as a criminal. Nothing will fool me."

Hogan sighed, Solstice's hard gaze putting him on edge. Never had the American Colonel met someone so…intense before. "We planted the tunnel because we wanted to incorporate you into our little operation, at least we can get you home."

"Okay. But why the secrecy?"

"We wanted to make sure that you weren't working for the Germans." Kinchloe answered.

Solstice rubbed her face in tired frustration. She didn't want to get involved in either the rebellion or this little espionage campaign. The bounty hunter lost too many friends who worked as spies for the Grand Army for the Republic. Did she really want to help these primitive natives? But did she really want to turn a blind eye, like she had been doing for the past fifteen years?

"Okay." She finally relented. "Okay. I will help you with your little…. spy network. However, I have one condition."

"What is it?" Carter asked. Solstice shot him a glare but answered.

"I want my ship, so that I can contact my friends. If I can't contact them and order a pick up, then I will work on my ship until I can get it up and running. Until then I will help you and do what you want, thought I have limits."

"And what are they?" Hogan asked. Solstice waited a moment, eyeing the man closely before speaking.

"I will not take part in assassinations or anything like that. No exceptions because that is a messy business. All I will do is grab any information you need. Anything past that…. it's a no go."

Hogan nodded in thought. His brown eyes flicked to his teammates. They all looked at him expectantly. The American Colonel jerked his head to the side, calling a meeting silently. Solstice waited outside the circle, examining the primitive radio with interest.

"What do you guys think?" He whispered.

"I say it's worth the risk." Kinchloe put in. "She has the advantage of getting information that we won't."

"And she did offer up her services." Newkirk pointed out. "I 'd say it's pretty fair that we help her get out of here."

Hogan sighed. It seemed that the majority were up for it but he would have to wait for Lebeau. However, something told the brown eyed soldier knew the French cook would say yes. So, it was unanimous. Straightening, Hogan and his men turned simultaneously towards Solstice, who seemed to fix a circuit board that Kinchloe was working on before this meeting. It seemed her fingers flew over the wires with such expertise Hogan wondered silently. Even though Carter got some information about the girl's past, it wasn't as detailed as Hogan wanted.

"Okay, you have a deal." He announced, startling the girl. "Newkirk will take you to where your ship is being stored. We'll go over protocol and safety measures when you get back."

The enigmatic woman nodded and followed the British corporal deeper into the tunnels. Newkirk and Solstice didn't say a word as they walked deeper into the maze of tunnels they had built over the few years they had been here. The cockney soldier glanced over at the guest with a raised eyebrow when he spotted her taking everything in as if prepping for an escape route. The brown-haired man decided to strike up a conversation.

"Nice weather eh?" The effects were almost instantaneous. Her blue eyes snapped forward and her posture tensed almost as if expecting to be ambushed.

"I just want to find my ship Corporal." She said. "Besides it wasn't my choice being here."

"Well neither did we." Newkirk pointed out.

The woman stopped dead in her tracks staring at him with a shocked expression. "Oh please." She gestured to the dirt walls. "You have a massive espionage operation. And I'm willing to bet my entire fortune that you have smuggled allies and enemies out of the country and camp. You might not be here by choice but you have a choice to stay."

She continued to walk before Newkirk started to follow her. His mind was distracted by the words she said. He was so distracted he didn't notice that they had reached the underground hangar where they kept all the stolen panzer tanks, automobiles and planes for missions. Out of all them, Solstice's plane stood out against all the 'primitive' modes of transportation. Well in Solstice's opinion.

"Hello baby! Mama's missed ya!" the bounty hunter greeted the plane. She kissed the grey and pink wing before hopping on the wing and making her way towards the glass bubble. Solstice opened it up and sat down in the cockpit. Her hands started to fly over the controls, starting the ship up if the hum of the engine was anything to go by. A few minutes later there was a sputtering noise and the entire thing shut down. Solstice grunted, slamming her fist against the console.

"I can't believe that this stupid thing won't work," she muttered as she stood, and made her way out of the cockpit. She rolled underneath one of the wings, fiddling with something.

"What's the verdict doc?" Newkirk asked when she rolled out.

"The engine is irreparable. The same thing could be said for the hyper drive. There is also a problem with the landing gear. I guess I should've listened to Bonga's instructions _not_ to use them."

"So, now what?"

"Now I guess that I need to try and contact the fleet." Solstice answered, wiping the grease off her hands. "The only problem is that the ceiling will block out any signals. Which means that I'll have to do it out of the camp."

"I don't think the Colonel'll like that."

The bounty hunter turned towards the British Corporal with a dull expression. "Well no offense to Colonel Hogan but I technically outrank him. And besides, I don't take orders from a native."

-Line break-

Location: Inner Core

Planet: Alderaan

Year: 18 BBY

Bonga sat in the office of Senator Bail Organa, waiting as patiently as he could for the esteemed senator of the Imperial Senate. The Calamari didn't realize that one of the members of the Imperial Senate was part of the rebellion. Of course, he was even more surprised when he found out that White Eagle was a part of the rebellion as well. It hurt to know that his longtime friend was a part of something that was trying to bring down the Galactic Empire. But after what happened at his mechanic shop back on Garrel…. he was having second thoughts about his so called 'protectors.' At least now his eyes were opened to the truth about all the atrocities committed by the government for many years.

Murders, genocide, and massacres…the list went on and on, and it got worse.

Bonga stood when the door opened and Senator Organa walked in. The senator was dressed in a nice blue sweater, blue pants and black boots. He gestured for Bonga to be seated as he shut the door behind him and locked it. The Calamari mechanic fiddled with his fins as the Senator sat down just across from him.

"Don't look so nervous son." Bail smiled good-naturedly. Bonga forced himself to relax as he kept his eyes down.

"What's going to happen to me?" He whispered in fear. Word reached him that his shop had been burned to the ground and he was branded as a rebel. Bongo was officially a wanted man.

"Well that's up to you." Senator Organa steepled his fingers as he continued. "The way I see it you have two options. One of your options is that my many associates in the more…. darker side of the law can help you get fake ID so _you_ can disappear."

"And the other?" Bonga asked when the Senator paused.

"The other option is you can join the rebellion." Bongo realized why the senator paused. Never in his life had Bonga dreamed of joining any rebellion. He was simply content with running his little mechanics shop but now that was gone he might've not had a choice.

"Join the Rebellion?" He repeated just to make sure that he heard the senator right.

"Yes." Bail confirmed. "We are in desperate need of mechanics and from what White Eagle has told us you are quite handy with a wrench."

That caught the Calamari off guard. "She spoke about me?"

"Oh yes. Practically spoke the ear off anyone who would listen to her about you. I've heard that you could fix anything no matter how old it was."

Bonga blushed. All those years, he had no idea that his bounty hunter friend spoke so highly of him. It warmed his heart to know that she had trusted him, since she didn't trust anyone. Bonga weighed his options but in all honesty, saw only one true choice. Living his life on the run, always looking over his shoulder for storm troopers or such like that didn't seem like living. It just sounded like surviving. The only way to truly live now was to destroy the Empire.

"I-" the words stuck to Bonga's throat. The Calamari swallowed his pride before speaking with a nonwavering voice. "I would like to be a part of your rebellion."

Senator Organa's eyes lit up happily. "I'm glad to hear that." He reached over and pressed an intercom button. "Fulcrum you can come on in."

The door behind the Senator swooshed open and a grown Togrutan female walked in. She wore grey robes with two hilts on her belt. Her brilliant blue eyes sparkled happily when she spotted Bonga sitting in his seat, tense. The Togruta's grey lips twisted into a happy smile before she flashed her teeth. Not in a menacing way but in a happy, joyful way. Bonga knew that smile. He'd seen it on White Eagle plenty of times before she went out and drunk herself into a haze every Empire Day. The tight smile that said that while she was happy on the outside, something was seriously bothering her on the inside.

"Bonga Liferit?" The woman asked. To be respectful, Bonga stood and held out his hand for a shake, but the woman just shook her head, her lekku moving side to side. "It's fine."  
"Who are you?"

"My name is Ahsoka Tano." The Togruta-Ahsoka- introduced. "I am one of the many leaders of the Rebellion. However, for security's sake, you may call me Fulcrum."

Bonga nodded nervously. He remained standing until Fulcrum sat down, which is when he sat down. The three of them sat there in the room in silence, their eyes switching from each other.

"So, do I sign a waiver or something?"

Fulcrum chuckled at his little joke. "Now we test your skills with the wrench. If you'll follow me, please."

Bonga stood and closely followed the Togruta, nodding his head in the direction of the Senator, who still sat. He didn't even acknowledge the Calamari. The senator was staring at something in the distance, as if he was having a flash back, one that wasn't a good memory.

Bonga and Fulcrum continued to walk until they arrived in a hanger, where men in flight suits were running around different ships, refueling them. There was a group of three humans, a Twi'lek, and a Lasat stood around an old VCX-100 light fighter, staring at him and Fulcrum. Bonga avoided their gaze and forced himself to stare forward. The two aliens were approaching a very old starship that looked like it was falling apart at the seams. They stopped, Fulcrum crossing her arms and kicking out her hip.

"Your task is to make this ship operable." Fulcrum ordered.

Bonga cocked an eyebrow at the disaster of the ship. "This ship?"

Fulcrum nodded in confirmation. "This ship."

Bonga took a deep breathe before grabbing a wrench. First step was to check what was operable and what was not.

Fulcrum watched him the entire time, a smile slowly growing across her face. It took about two hours for Bonga to get the ship's engine, which was completely rusted, to work again and another three for him to get the fuel line repaired. When the ship was running, and it was safe to fly, Bonga hopped down next to Fulcrum, wiping the sweat and engine grease off his face. He waited for her verdict nervously, vaguely wondering what would happen to him if they didn't allow him into the rebellion.

Finally, after a few tense moments, Fulcrum spoke, "Very good." She held out a hand for a shake. When he clasped her hand, she said reverently, "Welcome to the Rebel Alliance."

Two hours later, the Calamari was moving into his new quarters aboard the command ship that belonged to the Phoenix Squadron. What little belongings he had, he stored in there before moving towards the cafeteria. It had been a while since he had something to eat, and he was curious about what type of food the Rebellion had. Many of the older soldiers were giving him weird looks as the passed him by but Bonga was too deep in his thoughts to notice. He was still thinking about White Eagle, hoping against hope that she was okay. As far as the Rebellion was concerned, she was still alive since her ship was still transmitting a signal. But since she hadn't tried to transmit an SOS or made contact, the rebellion wasn't going to try and attempt a rescue until she did.

When the Calamari entered the cafeteria, he was…. underwhelmed truthfully. There weren't a lot of food options, so he went with the mush that he had seen served at many Imperial bases. Most of the tables were empty but Bonga decided to sit in the far corner, where he could see most of the cafeteria. He was halfway done with his meal when the group from the hanger walked in. Well, the brown-haired man and the blue haired boy walked in anyway. The boy quickly made his way towards the "buffet" while the man was more reserved in his walk. They, unfortunately, decided to sit next to Bonga, who felt very uncomfortable with them.

"You the new guy?" the boy asked. Bonga spotted, for the second time that day, a hilt on his belt, as well as on the human adult's belt. Like with Fulcrum and White Eagle. But Bonga nodded silently.

"Cool!" The boy exclaimed. The man, thankfully, saw how the boy's energy was making the mechanic uncomfortable and placed a hand on his shoulder to calm him down.

"I'm Kanan. Kanan Jarrus." The brown-haired male introduced as he sat down.

"Bonga," the Calamari said.

"The name's Ezra Bridger," the blue haired boy added.

"So, you knew White Eagle huh?" Kanan asked. Bonga nodded as he blinked to keep the tears from falling. "She didn't want to get involved in the rebellion."

"Can we not talk about her in the past tense?" Bonga pleaded.

"Sorry," Kanan apologized.

A question bubbled in Bonga's mind as silence took the place of conversation. Finally, he worked up the nerve to ask the two humans, "So are you guys like…. Jedi or something?"

"Kind of." Ezra answered bashfully. "Why?"

"He wants to go and find White Eagle," Kanan answered. He looked up with those startling aquamarine eyes and Bonga tensed. He _was_ planning on grabbing a ship and finding his friend.

"Don't worry. We're planning on trying to find her as well." Kanan said when he saw Bonga tense. "Would you like to come?"  
"What does Senator Organa and Fulcrum say about this?" The two Jedi looked at each other with a rather mischievous gleam in their eyes.

"Nothing really," The boy answered, slyly.

Bonga didn't even hesitate. "I'm in."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Solstice sighed as she worked on the engine of her starfighter a little bit. She wasn't as good as Bonga, she was still pretty good. It came from being a Padawan that always got shot down on planets that didn't have any spare parts. But unfortunately, even she couldn't get this old engine to work. She doubted even Bonga could do it. When and if she rejoined the rebellion, the woman would have to get this entire starfighter replaced with new parts.

"Hey Solstice!" Carter greeted her as she rolled out. The young woman jumped, nearly missing bumping her head on the edge of the wing. She glared at boy as she wiped her hands on the greasy rag given to her. Though the brunette was being extremely petty, she thought it was justified. In her line of work, certain things said to certain people could have dire consequences. Solstice couldn't understand why in the galaxy she had opened to this guy. Perhaps it was the boyish charm he had. Or maybe the wide, goofy that was always plastered on his face. Or maybe it was the-

 _Stop it Solstice,_ she ordered herself. Even though the Order was gone, she still had obligations. And besides, the Empire would hurt anyone associated with her since she basically did everything in her power to stop them by herself.

"Are you okay?" Carter asked her, pulling her out of her thoughts. She pushed him off her.

"Yeah. I'm fine. What do you need?"

"Colonel Hogan needs you." The young man answered with a slight hurt tone. Solstice gave her acknowledgement as she attempted to make herself look a little presentable, rubbing the spot of grease that managed to get on her face. The bounty hunter started to walk away from the underground hangar down the tunnel with Carter closely behind her. Men crowding the tunnels parted for her as she sauntered down the hallway. Solstice had to suppress the urge to smirk as she entered the communications room. Hogan, with Kinch, sat at one of the radios. In the dark-skinned man's hands, he held a notepad with hastily scribbled words on it. When the woman stopped in front of them, they were still in a deep discussion, one that the bounty hunter had to clear her throat to interrupt.

"Whatcha need Colonel?" She questioned.

"We've got an assignment for you Solstice," the brown-haired Colonel informed her. "The Underground has informed us that there is a lieutenant in Hammelburg that has important plans for a new type of craft."

"Okay?"

"Your job is to sneak into the hotel this lieutenant is staying in and get those plans." Hogan informed.

She shrugged. "That sounds easier said than done."

"Don't worry. You'll have Carter beside you. Newkirk!" The blue-clad soldier appeared with a death stick in his mouth. Solstice couldn't help but give a little smile at a story Master Kenobi told her once after searching for Senator Amidala's assassin of when a guy tried to sell him a Death stick. "We need a Gestapo uniform and maybe a dress for Solstice."

"Hold on a minute. How are we, prisoners of war, supposed to sneak out, dressed as civilian, go all the way to this village, steal the plans and get back in time for evening roll call?"

"We have our ways." Hogan answered slyly.

"Okay." Solstice sighed, rubbing the on-coming headache that was slowly forming. "Say I do agree to this. What will be our story?"

"Carter, you are Gestapo general Hamstrunburg in town for leave while and are on a date with your lovely, young wife Helga Hamstrunburg.'

"'Hamstrunburg'? Really? That's the best you can come up with?" Solstice asked. This was the first time she spoke such subserviently to a high command. Granted she was a Jedi but when the War ended, she was still a Padawan and subsequently a Commander. Hogan outranked her.

Or did he?

Hogan shrugged. "We had very little time to do so."

"True." Solstice relented.

"Say Colonel, when do we pull this off?"

The brown-eyed colonel pulled his jacket sleeve up to reveal a primitive time-telling piece. "Oh, three hours maybe? Newkirk why don't we go ahead and start the fitting?"

"Right away Colonel." The brown-haired smoker gestured for the two to follow. Both Carter and Solstice followed reluctantly towards the back. They stopped when they reached a rack of clothes that were placed in a hidden niche. There were multiple pieces of uniforms of different rank and civilian clothes alike. Solstice had to admit: despite everything, Hogan and his men had an interesting and interact operation going on. The colonel had thought of just about everything from spies placed in their midst to coded messages that no one could crack. If the Republic had this kind of operation, there was no way that they could've lost the war.

"A'right, her' we go." Newkirk muttered to himself as he pulled out a small grey uniform and handed it to Carter. "An' for you miss."

Solstice's face scrunched up in visible disgust as the corporal handed her a light blue dress. It was sparkly and fancy. The dress looked like it stopped just above her ankles, the sleeves just falling over her shoulder. The midsection looked to be tight, and would probably not allow any quick movements like fighting. The brunette glanced over at Carter, who was starting to take off his uniform. Newkirk had grabbed a pen and clipboard, along with a tape measure and several pins. The bounty hunter sighed as she went behind the screen. She stripped down to her undershirt and underwear before redressing in the dress.

Though her inner girl was screaming in excitement at wearing a dress like this, her outer Jedi was completely and utterly disgusted. These men would have her wear this? Her theory on the tight midriff was correct. It was too tight, making it difficult to breath, let alone do complicated maneuvers. Solstice scoffed as she finished tying off the last string. She sighed as she made her way out from behind the screen. The only good thing about the dress was the material was light weight, flowing with her movements. If only it was a little shorter. And a lot less tight.

"How's it feel, Carter?" Newkirk asked. He noticed the young man was pulling at the collar.

"Eh, a little tight around the collar." The blond American answered. Newkirk sighed as he pulled the lad's collar a little bit. As the British man was fixing it, a noise from behind the screen drew his attention. He saw Solstice's silhouette from where she was trying to get the dress on. Never one to approve of peeping tom's, Carter adverted his eyes to look at Newkirk, who was almost finished with his collar. About five minutes later, Solstice hobbled out from behind the screen.

"Wow," he breathed. Newkirk glanced up at him questioningly before following the man's gaze. The British soldier's eyes went wide as he examined the woman in front of him. He had to agree with the younger man's declaration. The woman was stunning. The dress he picked out was just the right shade of blue, complementing her brilliant aquamarine eyes. Her dark brown hair fell over her shoulder in a chocolate wave. Despite the curve that the dress showed off, Solstice was clearly uncomfortable in the dress. Newkirk noticed it and immediately started to fix it.

"Where's it uncomfortable love?"

"Where do I start?" Solstice grumbled. She hiked the front part up a little bit before pulling at the waist. "It's too small of a waist. How do you guys expect me to fight in this?"

Newkirk gave the girl a chuckle while he undid the waist a little. "You? Fight? But you're a girl!"

"I may be a girl but I can throw anyone over 300 pounds over my shoulder with ease." She stated as she examined it again. She scowled. "Feels good. Although, it would be a crime to leave me undefended."

"But you're a girl." Newkirk stated again while he gave Carter a pistol and some bullets. "The Krauts won't suspect a proper German woman to carry a weapon."

"Well, as you know I'm not a proper woman." Solstice shot back. She looked angry beyond reason. Carter, unsure of what to do, unsheathed the knife that came with the uniform and handed it the woman. She smirked, testing out the sharpness of the blade. To his and Newkirk's surprise, Solstice shamelessly hiked up her dress and stuck it in her panty holder. When she smoothed it down, the brown-haired bounty hunter sat down and placed those horrible pinchy shoes on her feet.

"This better be worth it." Solstice muttered as she stood.

"Come now my fraulien." Carter ordered gently as he slipped into his fake German accent. He offered Solstice his arm. The former Jedi just smiled slyly as she wrapped her arm around his. Carter's sly smile softened as he gazed into the woman's twinkling eyes. Hogan came down at that moment. He smiled as he cleared his throat.

"Well, you two lovebirds look ready to do the fox trot." He stated with a light laughter. Solstice was the first to jump apart, giving the Colonel an angry glare. Carter blinked owlishly. He leaned a little way back, his eyes going wide suddenly. Hogan noticed it and grew worried. "What's wrong Carter?"

"There's scars on her back!" He exclaimed. Solstice became defensive as she backed up against the wall.

Hogan gestured her to come forward. When she stayed rooted where she was, he stated with the utmost authority, "I'm sorry my dear but I order you to show me your back. Seeing as how I outrank you, you have to obey."

Solstice, still rooted, only gave a chuckle. "There was a saying in one of the divisions in the army I was a part of. 'Experience outranks everything'. And seeing how I was a warrior, seasoned at age ten, I believe I outrank you."

The brown-haired American Colonel sighed as he relented. He had to. Time was of the essence and those plans the German officer were holding were detrimental to the Allies winning the war. For now, he let this thing go. But he made a mental note to question the woman later.

"Okay. I give. We need to get you two on the road to Hammelburg." He gave the two a push towards the emergency tunnel, before pressing two rings into each hand. "Remember: get those plans and get back here before morning roll call. And most importantly: don't get caught."

"Yes Colonel." Carter gave a salute before vanishing down the tunnel. Solstice slipped on the faux ring before following Carter.

"You think they can pull it off?" Kinch asked as soon as the tunnel entrance was closed. Hogan sighed.

"No doubt about it," Hogan answered with only slight hesitance.

About an hour of trekking through a dark and dusty forest, Solstice and Carter found themselves in an automobile on their way to Hammelburg. They used the excuse of their car breaking down to get a ride from a passing car. The driver wasn't very happy to go several miles out of his way to drop off two strangers but Solstice used an old Jedi mind trick to convince the man to take them. Carter gave her a strange look for five minutes before returning his gaze forward. After a thirty-minute drive, the two were dropped off at the hotel.

Both POWs walked into the hotel, two pairs of eyebrows going up at the lavish party going on in the lobby. Solstice dusted off a smudge of dirt off her face before straightening her spine and going forward with her arm laced with Carter's. The American was tense but easily slipped into the crowds and mingled a little too well with the other officers. Solstice tried to mingle with the few women in attendance but it was a little too hard to do so, since all they spoke about was hairstyles and which officer was hot.

Carter, or General Hamstrungburg, was the topic of many conversations. Many of the girls swooned over the fact that he was the youngest officer to be given the rank Gestapo general. Of course, being his 'wife', Solstice had to make sure these women never forgot that the man was 'taken'. She caused quite a stir among the women with her talk about how great he was in bed, something she relished in. It was hilarious watching all those faces turn red so quickly. Solstice grew tired of hanging out with the pansies so she decided to hang out with Carter, who was currently regaling the officers with false battle stories. The band was currently playing a slow song and the blue-eyed Jedi wanted to see if the man had anything for her to do.

"Ah, my dear." Carter greeted, his voice thick with German.

"Darling, they are playing our song," Solstice poured on the pout in her voice. "Would you please take a break from the war, and dance with your loving wife? I'm sure that your new friends won't mind."

"Of course, my dear." Carter turned to the men. "Excuse me gentlemen, but duty calls."

"You sly dog," One of the younger looking Corporals gave a toast to the two. Solstice had to theorize that this man was three sheets to the wind. "Go and win one for Germany. Heil Hitler."

"Heil Hitler." Carter turned and together the two made their way in the middle of the dancefloor. When the two were gently swaying, and Solstice resting her head on Carter's shoulder, the blonde American whispered in her ear, "Having a good time?"

"Please," she scoffed quietly in his ear. "All these women, these pansies more like it, are a pain. They are very stuck up and I think several of them had something stuck up their butts." She smiled as she felt Carter start to laugh. But the next question sobered him up, "Have you found that lieutenant we're supposed to be looking for?"

"I think he just walked in." He whispered. Carter slowly moved position where Solstice could see a greasy haired man with a uniform that marked him as a lieutenant walked in with an entourage.

"Are you sure that's him?" Solstice asked.

"Oh yeah." Carter confirmed. "Matches the description."

"Okay then." A million things swam in her mind but she quieted the thoughts down and focused on the one thing they were supposed to do. "Okay here's the plan-"

"Don't you even think of it!" Carter interrupted. "We're supposed to stick to Colonel Hogan's plan."

"No offense to the Colonel but his plan is too simplistic. He doesn't consider many things," Solstice stopped speaking when the American gave her a twirl. When he pulled her back to him, she continued, "This part of the plan we'll just have to improvise. Now, together we'll walk over there. You chat him up, I'll go and find his room and those plans. When I come back, we need to get out of here as quickly as possible. Got it?"

"Yeah sure."

"Okay. Let's do this." Solstice pretended to drag him across the dancefloor, giggling tipsily as she did, while Carter to pretended to be rather hesitantly agreeing to being dragged. "Come on, dear. I promise I won't embarrass you. Oh! Excuse me Lieutenant, I didn't see you there."

The Lieutenant gave her a look over before assuring her, "My dear fraulien, it is fine."

Solstice grabbed Carter's arm with great enthusiasm. "Oh, my goodness. Aren't you Lieutenant Dulseon?"

"The one and only," the young man answered with pride. "And you are?"

"Gestapo General Hamstrunburg. Heil Hitler." Carter answered with a salute. The Lieutenant repeated the greeting before scanning Solstice. "And this is my lovely wife, Helga."

Solstice allowed the lieutenant to kiss her knuckles. "You are rather lovely _, Frau_ Hamstrungbrug."

"If you'll gentlemen excuse me, I need to go and powder my nose." She excused herself while gently ripping her hand out of the man's.

"Dear, you look fine." Carter assured her.

"No. Besides, I feel like I will be intruding on war talk, something I feel should never involve we fragile women." Solstice sighed. The lieutenant gave her a toast.

"A wise thing to say Frau." The Lieutenant agreed. "I would not want to give my dear frau any nightmares nor would I want slip to anything confidential."

"But of course." Solstice make sure to give her 'husband' a peck on the cheek before sauntering off. She made her way to the front desk. The bounty hunter didn't want to wander the halls too long and she didn't want to have to have an overlapping lie.

"Can I help you fraulien?" The man asked. The bell boy was wearing a private uniform, thumbing through a magazine lazily.

"Yes, I am looking for Room 39?"

He didn't look up from his magazine as he pointed to the elevator. "Take the elevator up two floors. Anything else?"

"No that is all." Solstice started to walk away but stopped and turned around. She slowly placed the magazine down so the man was staring at her. With a wave of her hand and an authoritative voice she said, "You did not see me."

His eyes glazed over as he repeated monotonously, "I did not see you."

Satisfied, the former Jedi quickly made her way to the elevator. It took all of five minutes to find the lieutenant's room and took about twenty to pick the lock. Newkirk had, gratefully, given her a rundown on how to pick primitive locks. Thankfully she was a quick learner. Once the door was open, Solstice easily slipped in and shut the door behind her quietly. She sighed as she relaxed her guard.

 _This is going to be a piece of cake,_ she foolishly thought as she turned, only to stop in shock.

The Lieutenant of Germany had a complete disaster of a room.

Papers were strewn everywhere, like someone was already here, searching for something. Empty dishes and glasses with very little booze were placed sporadically around the room. The furniture was covered in a thin layer of cigarette ash. Whoever this Lieutenant Dulseon was, he sure wasn't a model soldier. From what the brunette heard around the camp, the Krauts were extremely organized and pristine in their living quarters. She had seen Kommadant Klink's private quarters when she first arrived. It was scary that an old bachelor like him had such a pristine quarter. It would take at least thirty minutes for her to sort through all these papers but unfortunately, she didn't have that long.

She had at least five minutes. Maximum. Sighing, Solstice wasted no time sorting through all the papers. Since Colonel Hogan didn't tell her what exactly she was looking for, the Jedi just stuffed all the important-looking papers in her dress.

 _This is so embarrassing,_ she thought. Solstice froze when she heard voices coming down the hallway, heading towards the room. She started to panic. Did Carter not stall them long enough? If he didn't, then if she didn't get out in time she would be in hot water. Hot water with a bullet between her eyes.

While she was having the slight panic, her eyes drifted to the ceiling. Suddenly she became calm as she started to form a plan. Solstice grabbed one last important document as she put her plan in motion.

-Line break-

Andrew Carter was a nervous wreck.

He was currently walking down a hallway with a large group of Gestapo generals and Lieutenant Dulseon towards the lieutenant's hotel room where Solstice was. The America sergeant had to hide his nervousness while also laughing along with the enemy. Everyone in the group was dead drunk, which made it slightly easier but still it was hard not to sweat bullets.

Andrew tried not to think about bullets.

He had tried to stall the group, using the excuse of wanting to wait for his wife to get back. But when Solstice failed to show, the Krauts got restless and pulled him along. The blond man had to go along with it if he wanted to keep up the façade of a willing Gestapo. One of the drunken solider slurred something about his wife wouldn't even know he was gone, they would go and have a couple schnapps, discuss certain things that were supposed to be spoken in privacy and be back. Carter laughed boisterously along with the drunken officers of the Third Reich even though he wasn't even close to being drunk.

"Genral Ha'stru'bur," One of the officers slurred, as he staggered against the wall. "Tell that pretty wife of yours that I'll be seeing her in my dreams."

"You got it sergeant," Carter made extra sure to slur his words. Lieutenant Dulseon struggled to open his door. Andrew's heart stopped when the door slowly swung open, but it started again when he saw the room was…. empty?

"Come. Let's have some schnapps." Lieutenant ordered as everyone piled into the room. While the German officers poured more alcohol, Carter scanned the room for any signs of Solstice. There was a light sneeze right as Dulseon popped open a bottle with a loud pop. Slowly, Andrew lifted his eyes to the ceiling where Solstice was. The blond man cocked his head in confusion when she caught. How'd the brunette woman got up there in high heels and an evening gown, he had no idea but it only added to the mystery to the woman.

"Gather 'round men," Lieutenant Dulseon ordered. Carter joined the circle as Solstice got a little more comfortable on the ceiling. The Gestapo Lieutenant held in his hand what looked like a blank sheet of paper. "This, is the blueprints to a new *hiccup* type of craft. Clearly showing those dummkopf Allied forces the superiority of German science."

As people cheered happily, Carter noticed how some of the soldiers were falling unconscious one by one. The solider discreetly placed his glass down on the table. When Dulseon got to the end of his speech, his words were completely incomprehensible. Finally, he fell over, drunk out of his mind. When the room was a chorus of snores and drunken mutterings, Solstice jumped down from her place on the ceiling with a smile on her face.

"Wow, I can't believe that worked," she muttered as she gently kicked the unconscious body of lieutenant Dulseon. She laughed as she turned to Carter, "You ready to go?"

He nodded. "Got the plans?"

"I'm not sure, but I've got some papers." She explained. The brunette woman opened the door a crack, glancing down the hallway before strolling out, with Carter in tow. That confused him.

"Where?" He whispered.

"Uh, you don't want to know," Solstice whispered back hesitantly.

After she said that, the two POWs stealthily made their way out of the hotel. They had to do a sharp one-hundred-and-eighty when they saw the lobby of the hotel filled with Krauts. Since there was a greater chance of them getting spotted, Carter suggested that they turn around and use the back door. However, as soon as they stepped into the kitchens they froze.

There yelling at the cook, was General Burkhalter himself.

Solstice found herself rooted to the ground in fear, unable to take a breath in. The Gestapo general was about to turn around and spot them when the cook called him back, trying to placate the large man. Thankfully, the diversion was just enough to snap Carter out of his shocked stupor. He pulled him and Solstice into a cabinet, the door closing as the large General stormed past them. The American sergeant glanced over at his companion, worried at how pale she was. But before he had a chance to ask her if she was okay, the door flew open.

"Come. You are safe now." The cook assured.

"Thanks," Carter breathed.

"Of course. Always glad to help Allied soldiers. Who sent you? Do I know him?"

"We're Papa Bear's cubs," Solstice answered, snapping out of her daze. "We need to find quick exit. If my internal clock is right, it's almost sunrise."

"You are correct," the still unnamed cooked confirmed.

"Are there any tunnels? And do any of them connect to Stalag 13?"

Carter knew it was a long shot. As far as he knew, his team was the only team in the Underground that had a vast network of tunnels. But, as he was continued to be mystified by certain events that had transpired recently, the cook nodded, gesturing them to follow him. Solstice went first then Carter. The two POWs were led further to the back and ultimately the freezer. The old cook reached down and tried to pry a tile off. Solstice reached down and singlehandedly pulled a cluster of tiles off the ground. Carter, who had been keeping an eye out, glanced back, his eyes widening.

Where the cluster of tiles used to be, there was a straight-down tunnel. The blond sergeant shut the door when he noticed the cook was gesturing for him to come. He went first. The drop down into an unknown tunnel was slightly terrifying, but he relaxed a little after his feet hit the packed dirt at the bottom. Solstice took a little longer but when she did, she grabbed him by his collar and pulled him forward. The two were mainly walking (more like jogging) by feel alone, unlit they came to a fork in the tunnel with lights.

Solstice took an immediate left, and five minutes later, they entered a familiar area, at least to Carter. The young man found himself taking the lead, his heart racing. They were just going to make it with barely enough time to change out of their costumes. He relaxed a little when they came upon a ladder that led to a hatch.

Together the two pushed the hatch open. Once they were above ground, they sighed in relief when they spotted the familiar stump that led to Stalag 13's tunnels. Both pushed themselves to the ground when the spotlight came over them but hurriedly opened the stump when it vanished. Carter sighed in relief as he and Solstice (who had discarded her high heels) ran towards the radio room.

Hogan was pacing nervously while Kinch was monitoring the radio. As soon as the brunet officer spotted them he visibly relaxed.

"How'd it go?" he demanded.

"No time," Solstice breathlessly exclaimed. She pulled out the papers she managed to grab from her breast and place them on the desk in one large heap. "Look over these after roll call."

To the men's continuous dismay and embarrassment, the woman ripped the dainty fabric of the dress right off herself, revealing her undergarments. Carter felt his face go redder than tomatoes as he adverted his eyes. He heard Hogan cough uncomfortably while Kinch had stood and made his way back to his barracks. Silently, Solstice snatched her uniform from where it was hanging, easily slipped it on in one movement and was dashing back down the corridor that led to her barracks. Carter did the same with his Gestapo uniform, except he peeled it off carefully, and replaced it with his normal uniform when Hogan had left.

He quickly made his way up to the barracks. The blond American had just shut the entrance to the tunnel when Schultz barged into the barracks.

"Raus, raus," he ordered loudly. There was a symphony of groans and mutterings that Carter had gotten used to. "Everybody up for roll call. Raus! Raus!"

Everyone dutifully filed of their barracks and stood in the early morning cold. Solstice came out of hers after one of the younger guards gave the door three knocks. Carter forgot that he was supposed to supply the woman with a coat since it felt like it was near freezing but to his and everyone else's surprise, she was wearing a long, brown cloak with the hood up. It looked a little small on her, but she seemed to be warm enough. Carter found himself relaxing, laughing along with the other prisoners as they gave Schultz a tough time during roll call.

"Colonel Hogan, puulease control your men," the large guard ordered. The brown-haired colonel just shrugged.

"What can I say Schultz? The men need a little form of entertainment once and a while."

"But why do _I_ have to be the source of the entertainment?" Schultz questioned. Before Hogan could answer, Klink appeared from his quarters, wrapped in a long black coat.

"Reeeepppooorrrrttt!" He ordered.

Schultz snapped to attention. "Herr Kommandant, all prisoners present and accounted for!"

"Excellent." Klink cooed. Solstice, alone by herself in front of her barracks, sighed as the old man in front of her started his usual spiel. She droned it out in favor of spreading herself out with the force. It was almost a daily routine for her now, even though she had been in this camp for less than a month. Solstice found by doing this, it slowly helped her reconnect with the Force and strengthen the bond she had with the cosmos before the massacre. She found that by slowly allowing herself to open herself in the early morning hours during roll call, she was able to rediscover some of the things she learned. But it did have its drawbacks.

Every now and then, she would accidentally connect with an animal or two. That animal would literally climb a barbed wire fence just to get to her. It was embarrassing to try and explain how a dog from Dulsedorf got into her barracks to Klink.

Eventually she snapped back into attention when the Kommadant's voice shouted, "Diiiiisssssmmmmiiiiiisssseeeddd!"

The usual organized chaos happened as the prisoners scattered around the compound, majority of them heading back into the barracks for some warmth and sleep. Solstice wanted nothing more than to collapse on her bed, but she needed to do two things before she did.

One was find her communicator, which she must've dropped when she first tried to escape.

Second, she needed to figure out what she grabbed earlier when riffling through Dulseon's stuff. Gods, fate really did hate her.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

"Blimey," Newkirk exclaimed as he sorted through the stack of papers in front of him. "Wha'd you do? Grab the 'hole ruddy office?"

In truth he was right. Right after roll call, Hogan's men and Solstice had retreated to Barracks 2 where they attempted to sort through the papers Carter and Solstice brought back from their mission. The British Corporeal was stunned at the massive stack of documents written in German, and a few were written in an unidentifiable language. Many of the papers were other important things such as dates, plans and even a list of spies placed behind Allied lines.

Solstice shrugged from her place in the corner. She seemed to be doing some stretches or something. "I ran out of time. Besides, you never really taught me how to read German, so I didn't really know what I was looking for. So, I grabbed whatever looked important."

"Well, good job on that anyway." Hogan complemented as he attempted to sort through his stack. "Looks like there's a whole slew of information that I don't think that the Underground even knows about."

There was a knock at the door before Kinch opened it. "Excuse me Colonel. Ms. Winters, the engineers down in Tunnel 6 say your ship is beeping. They're worried that something might go off."

The brunette woman straightened as she sighed thoughtfully. "Are there three beeps every two minutes?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Hm. Must be an incoming transmission." She muttered. "Even if I answer it, it won't come through clearly unless I had my comm. Speaking of which, Colonel Hogan, you didn't happen to find a small circular device by chance?"

The RAF corporeal glanced over at his commanding officer. The dark-haired American nodded slowly before fishing into his pocket. He dug around for a minute or so before he handed what looked like a metallic device to Solstice, whose eyes lit up like a Christmas Tree.

"Oh, thank the Force!" She breathed. "If anyone needs me, I'll be in the tunnel."

With that, the brunette was gone along with the dark-skinned sergeant. Newkirk, fed up with searching through all those papers, stood up and followed the pair closely. He couldn't take Lebaeu's incessant chattering about food or Carter's rambling stories about how he used to do something like this back home. Besides, he wanted to see what kind of communications system the seemingly-advanced woman had. He managed to catch up to them as they entered Tunnel 6.

Out of all the planes they had stored underneath here, Solstice's plane stood out the most. It had a design that made it look like it could fly at speeds unheard of and be extremely stealthily. When it first was brought into the tunnel, Newkirk had helped one of the pilots study the thing. The turrets on the plane were so small it was hard to believe this thing was used in combat.

Solstice muttered something as she sat in the cockpit. Newkirk shrugged as Kinch glanced over the woman's shoulder as she started to fiddle with a couple of wires. She was engrossed in trying to connect the small piece of metal Colonel had handed her to the plane. He and Kinch watched the woman expertly connect a cord to the piece of metal. A space on the plane opened to reveal an antenna. Newkirk's eyebrows went up to his hairline in shock. Both soldiers continued to watch fascinated.

"Looks like it's from Fulcrum. Hm, the signal is still too weak. Maybe if I redirect all power to the communications." she muttered. "Here we go."

Newkirk and Kinch's eyes almost fell out of their skull when a strange looking emblem appeared. It looked like two large lines that formed a diamond with two smaller diamonds on either side. It fizzled in and out before it solidified, a garbled voice speaking. Newkirk had to focus hard to hear the words the voice was speaking.

" _This is Fulcrum."_ The voice garbled. _"We have entered an important phase of the Rebellion. Senator Mon Mothma has joined the ranks of defected senators."_

"Well, good for her," Solstice muttered

"Sh!" Kinch ordered as the voice continued.

" _White Eagle, if you are listening, I am offering a new assignment."_ The image of the diamonds disappeared before an image of a man appeared. _"This is Doctor Kandar Serth, leading Imperial scientist in experimental technology. According to several reports, Dr. Serth has gone missing but is working on something big. Your job: find Dr. Serth. If he is working something that could turn the tide of this rebellion, acquire any plans you can. You shall be paid fifteen thousand credits for delivering Dr. Serth and his plans. However, if you are unable to do so, you have the authority to eliminate him and his work. May the Force be with you. Fulcrum out."_

There was silence that penetrated the three of them. Peter Newkirk blinked owlishly, still running everything the garble voice said through his mind. Solstice sat there, looking deep in thought as though she was silently debating taking up the offer. The RAF corporeal remembered when she joined the crew temporarily. She had been adamant about not doing any assassinations, but now this person named Fulcrum was telling her to kill this person. And what kind of name is Fulcrum? From the way the brunette woman was thinking, it looked like she was seriously considering taking this job.

"Bloody 'ell." He breathed. "Wha' do you suppose tha' was about?"  
"Serth…Serth…. That name sounds familiar…" Solstice muttered. The brunette woman climbed out of her ship and made her way over to the table where her three personal items were. She grabbed the golden and blue cube. With her eyes closed and Newkirk and Kinch watching silently, as the cube floated in the air. The corners detached, revealing a hexagon. The center gave a soft blue glow as another blue image of a person appeared. This man looked younger with brownish hair with a scar running down his face. He wore strange clothes, even stranger than Solstice's.

"No' who's tha'?" Newkirk couldn't stop his question.

"Wow. That's amazing." Kinch breathed. He made to touch but was his hand was gently slapped away.

"Sorry Kinch," Solstice explained as she opened her eyes. "But I can't have you break my concentration. Corporeal Newkirk, to answer your question, this is one of the greatest Jedi of our generation." Her face turned sour. "And the greatest snake to roam the galaxy."

" _This is General Anakin Skywalker, updating the reports for the Jedi High Council."_ The man spoke. _"Today was a tough day for the Galactic Republic. After the arrest of Doctor Nuvo Vindi, we discovered that he had an apprentice, a Kandar Serth from Chandrila, however we believe that he has already vanished. Although several Jedi Masters tested, we discovered that Doctor Vindi never shared his formula for creating the Blue Shadow Virus. Even though the_ good doctor _almost released the deadliest virus known to any species, from what he said, Kandar Serth is on a complete different range of insane."_

The image stopped. Solstice made a closing motion and the cube closed. Newkirk and Kinch had to catch her and keep her from fainting.

"You alright there, Sol?" Kinch asked as the two sat her down on the wing of her plane. The woman had beads of sweat on her head.

"Yeah." She breathed. She placed her head between her legs as she took deep breaths. "I've never opened myself up to the Force that long. It was…. whew." She stood. "I need to go and talk to Colonel Hogan. You guys may be dealing with someone on a different plane of insanity than this Hitler guy."

Up in Hogan's personal quarters in Barracks 2, the American Colonel, along with Newkirk, Lebeau, Kinch and Carter sat in contemplation. Solstice had just given them a rundown from what she just learned from her higher up. Colonel Hogan had been disturbed to hear this man, Kandar Serth, was, as she put it, 'on a different playing field of insanity than Hitler'.

"Are you sure?" Colonel Hogan asked for the umpteenth gazillion time.

"Yes. I am sure Colonel." Solstice answered slightly irritable. Everyone saw the fatigue clear on her face.

"And are you sure this…. Fulcrum can be trusted?"

The brunette sighed tiredly. "Look Colonel, though the true nature and name of Fulcrum has never been revealed to anyone except for the high brass, I trust Fulcrum with my life. And I also trust the information given to me. Besides, if the Rebellion is willing to pay me fifteen thousand credits, Dr. Serth is someone they really want their hands on."

"Do you know him?" Kinch asked curiously.

"Not personally." Solstice answered. "I believe he was an apprenticed scientist underneath the direction of Nuvo Vindi. Vindi was a scientist hired to recreate a deadly virus, known only as the Blue Shadow Virus."

"The Blue Shadow Virus?" Lebeau asked worriedly. Solstice waved the question away dismissively.

"Before my time. It was rumored to be the deadliest disease in the entire galaxy. It was eradicated but Dr. Vindi brought it back. Fortunately, the Order and the Republic stopped him from spreading it."

"Do you think that this Dr. Serth could re-engineer the virus?" Hogan interrogated.

"No." Solstice answered immediately. Colonel Hogan shot her a questioning look, one at which she elaborated, "Dr. Vindi didn't trust anyone with his work. As soon as the Jedi captured the 'good' doctor, they destroyed his work and made sure to track down all labs belonging to him. They were all destroyed along with his work, and made triple sure that no one had any copies of the Blue Shadow Virus. It was hard work but eventually the Jedi relaxed."

"What kind of 'ork does this bloody docto' do?" Newkirk asked.

"Mainly experimental ships and bombs." The brunette picked up a sheet of paper. "This one looks to be some sort of stealth ship with ion canons and this one…holy force!"

"What? What is it?" Carter worriedly questioned as gthe woman scanned the plans.

"This is…. no. Maybe it's my imagination? Oh, I hope it is."

 _"Ce qui est Mademoiselle?"_ Lebeau questioned.

"This is bad. This is very, very bad!" She groaned. Solstice slammed the paper down on the desk, allowing the five men to look over her shoulder. The drawing on the paper was of a circle within another circle. Thought simplistic in a nature, the numbers and scribbles in the margin suggested something entirely different.

"Wha' the 'ell is this?" Newkirk groaned as he scratched his head.

"Something that could put a damper on the Rebellion." She pulled out her sliver of metal and placed it on the table. Hogan and his men watched from a corner that the brunette woman shoved them in as she pressed a button. There was a tense moment as there was a pinging noise. A few moments later, there was a man wearing who wore a strange helmet.

 _"This is a restricted frequency. What do you want?"_

"The White Eagle of Garrel wishes to speak to the Phoenixes of Lothal." Solstice said, using the code phrase given when she started to work for a spy and informant for the Rebellion.

 _"I will patch you through,"_ the man said before disappearing.

"What was that?" Carter asked.

"Protocol." Solstice answered with sigh. "If I had my way, all I would have to do is say my alias. But I do understand that they are in place to keep everyone involved safe. Hold on."

Everyone watched Solstice place her helmet over her head as the blue glow appeared once more. This time, two men, one with short salt and pepper hair, and another with a goatee stood, along with a woman in a long white dress.

 _"Ah, White Eagle,"_ the man with the goatee greeted. _"We were beginning to believe that you've been captured by the Empire."_

"You insult me Senator Organa." Solstice feigned hurt. "You have no faith in my skills."

 _"So, this is the infamous White Eagle."_ The redhead woman smiled, placing her hands behind her back. _"I've heard many good things about you. Though I hope to one day meet you in person."_

"Thank you, Senator."

 _"Why are you contacting us?"_ The clean-shaven man questioned harshly. Hogan narrowed his eyes. The man sounded very strict. Everyone noticed how Solstice's body language changed, from poised yet relaxed to on-guard.

"I have acquired a few of Dr. Serth's papers. From what I can see, most of the plans are for several types of experimental planes, bombs, grenades and such. However, the thing that caught my eye were the plans for what looked like a new type of space station. One that could mean the end of the Rebellion."

 _"Are you sure? Have you found anything else?"_ the goatee man asked.

"Only that they are going to build it over Geonosis, or some remote planet on the edges of the galaxy. That may explain why the entire population have disappeared. I'll have to look deeper into his notes, but I am absolutely sure."

 _"We will need to get an exploration team to the planet as soon as possible."_ The redhead woman proposed.

 _"Agreed."_ The clean-shaven man declared. They turned to Solstice. _"Please continue to update us on any developments, per our agreement."  
_ "Of course, Commander." Solstice gave a two-fingered salute before she ended the strange image. When she removed her helmet, she sighed tiredly. Carter noticed how she leaned over the table, her eyes closed as if deep in thought. The brunette looked weary, almost as if there was something weighing on her. Carter hesitantly placed a hand on the young woman, who jumped as if startled. The American sergeant smiled sheepishly as the blue-eyed woman gathered the papers.

"And just what do you think you're doing?" Colonel Hogan questioned, placing a hand on one of the documents that Solstice were picking up. It nearly ripped it in two. Kinch pulled Carter back as the two stared each other down. Newkirk and Lebeau started to quietly place bets on who would out-stare each other. With two egos as big as the ones in the room, there was bound to be a little volatile and maybe a little funny.

"Listen here," the young woman started tersely. "These papers officially belong to Galactic Rebellion now, not you primitives. I don't mean to be rude, but this changes everything. Whatever this Dr. Serth is working on, it involves me."

"I thought you weren't part of this rebellion." Hogan shot back.

"Maybe so, but this type of station puts everyone in jeopardy, and that includes me. So, who I am allied to doesn't matter if they build this." Solstice sighed. "If the Empire gets this built, then lives are at stake."

Before anything else could be said, Schultz barged into the office. Solstice and Hogan quickly handed the papers to Newkirk and Lebeau who stuffed it under a pillow. The large guard caught the movement but not the paper. His eyes went wide before they closed. He adjusted the position of his riffle, making it so he could cover his eyes with his big fingers.

"I see nothing!" He muttered.

"What'd you need Schultz?" Hogan questioned as Solstice slid stealthily behind the large barracks guard. If the Colonel could keep the German sergeant distracted, maybe she could slip back into her barracks. But Schultz caught her moving and effortlessly blocked her exit.

"Colonel Hogan! You know the rules: no women in the barracks." He reminded the brown-eyed colonel with a pointed look at an embarrassed Solstice. Newkirk noticed how she discreetly waved her helmet and her communicator behind her back.

"I apologize for this Sergeant." She said sweetly. Newkirk grabbed the devices and placed them with the papers. "I was just asking if Colonel Hogan or any of his men would be so gracious to let me borrow some soap."

Schultz's face, which was scrunched up in a scowl, softened as Solstice's explanation and tone. It was clear the large guard had a soft spot for the young woman. He was always finding ways to sneak her a treat now and then. The big softie also protected her from those that catcalled her and tried to take her for their own. Not that Hogan and his men did the same, but Schultz's orders had a little more weight than Hogan's among the German guards.

"Don't worry Fraulien Winters. I will sneak you some soap after dinner." Schultz assured. Then his face morphed into a slight scowl as he ordered with a slight hard tone, "But don't let me catch you in barracks other than your own. Da?"

"Yeah. Yeah." Solstice waved as she was shooed out of the barracks. She sent one last look at Hogan's heroes before vanishing.

"All right Schultzie, wha's so impor'ant tha' you shooed the lass out?" Newkirk questioned.

"There is a man coming to Stalag 13. A scientist. The Kommadant wants everyone to be on their best behavior or it will be the Cooler for everyone!" Schultz whispered. Hogan's men glanced at each other, wary glances plastering their faces. Hogan nodded, a plan forming in his mind.

"And who's this…. scientist?"

Schultz's eyes went wide. "No. I know nothing! And if I did know something, I would not tell you, or poof! Straight to the Russian Front."

Hogan nodded discreetly Lebeau while Schultz was going on his typical spiel. The barracks cook grabbed a pot of stew from behind one of the bunks. The French corporal waved a little bit of the aromatic fumes towards the fat guard. Schultz sighed heavenly as his eyes zeroed in on the bowl. Robert nodded to Louis who hovered the bowl underneath the blabber mouth guard's nose. Hans Schultz sighed as he leaned in closer but as he made to grab the bowl, the Frenchman yanked it away. The German sergeant sent a pleading look to the small 'cockroach'.

"Give us the name of the scientist and you can have all the soup you want." Hogan promised. There was a moment where the men saw Schultz have that inner battle that he usually had. Finally, the old guard sighed in defeat.

"All right! All right!" A lot more quietly, he said, "The man's name is Kandar Serth. He's a scientist on the Fuhrer's staff. He's supposed to be coming here so he could work in private on something very important, which I don't know."

Hogan sighed as he allowed the large guard to snatch the large bowl of soup away. His men sent him glances, knowing for sure that he was most likely already coming up with several plans. But as he did, he felt his panic bubble up. Too many things were happening, and too soon. There didn't seem to be enough time to pause in-between missions, even though this was war. These missions were a part of something much larger than the war that Hogan and his men were fighting. The fight Solstice seemed to be a part of seemed to be embroiled in something much older than she was. Almost like an ancient feud.

The brown-haired colonel shook his head, dismissing the thoughts as Schultz left, reminding everyone unnecessarily that roll call was going to be in an hour. Robert Hogan ordered his men to get some rest before roll call, saying that he had a feeling the next few days were going to be tough. As they all went about to do their own thing, Hogan plopped down at his desk, trying to ignore the heavy tension that was suddenly draped over them.

Among the thoughts racing through his mind, one thought didn't leave him: _what exactly did I get my men into?_

-Line break-

Solstice stared up at the plain ceiling, tapping her foot against the board lazily in boredom. There was a slight snowstorm raging outside, but for some reason the cold didn't touch the brunette. Her entire body was hot, almost feverish. Whenever she showed even the slightest signs of being sick, Solstice would take every single bit of over the counter medicine she could find. Because every hospital on every planet were required to take blood and run it through a database the Empire kept on all the Jedi. Sort of like VICAP.

But here in a prisoner of war camp, medicine was hard to come by and Solstice was pretty sure she was just a little flustered from looking through stacks of papers all day. Her head started to pound painfully, and the energy was suddenly drained from her body. Solstice inadvertently felt her muscles go limp, her eyes drooping. With some difficulty, the brunette Jedi turned on her side, the fever that was now racking her body making her feel like she was dying.

With a fleeting thought ( _I hope I can join the Cosmic Force_ ) Solstice's eyes fluttered shut. She didn't even hear the guard knocking on her door for roll call as darkness latched onto her.

Outside in the snow, Carter looked on worriedly as the guard banged on Solstice's door with the butt of his gun impatiently. Usually, the woman was out of her barracks after three knocks. His heart beat faster as the soldier, obviously fed up with waiting, pulled back and knocked the door down. Splinters went everywhere, the guard raising his rifle just in case of a sudden attack. Carter felt his hear stop and his breath catching in his throat. Beside him, Hogan visibly tense, his body like a cat about to pounce.

"I feel like a bowl of warm soup," The Colonel muttered, just loud enough for his men to hear. There was a moment of tense silence, before the men started to shuffle their feet. To the Krauts, it looked like the men were just starting to fidget or move their feet to regain some feeling in it. But, they were getting ready to run. What the Colonel had muttered was a code phrase he created in case they were accused of espionage and about to be arrested. However, they suddenly relaxed when the guard dropped his rifle and called out to the other guards.

 _"Hilfe!"_ He shouted, causing the other guards to rush forward. _"Ich brauche einen sanitäter!"_

Carter then found himself running towards the barracks, along with Olsen and several others. The young American pushed his way to the front of the small crowd that found itself formed in front of Solstice's door. The guard that called the alarm was kneeling next to an unconscious Solstice. Her forehead was beaded with sweat, her hair plastered to her face, and her skin unnaturally pale. Carter was pulled back by Schultz, who with Olsen in tow, pushed their way forward. Schultz shouted orders at the other guards, probably to leave, which they did. Even though Schultz was known around the camp as something of a push-over, no one disobeyed him when he got mad.

"What's going on?" Hogan questioned.

"Something's wrong with Solstice." Carter answered, panic evident in his voice. He felt his breath pick up, but his lungs refused air. "She looks like she has a fever or something!"

"Calm down, Sergeant!" Hogan ordered, pulling rank because one of his best men was panicking. When Carter's breath slowed a little, Hogan ordered, "Go back to Barracks 2, and have a cup of coffee. I'll see if there's something I can do."

The blond Technical Sergeant nodded wordlessly, his eyes slightly wide. Hogan watched as Carter entered Barracks 2, making sure that the young man followed his orders. Once he disappeared through the door, the brown-haired Colonel turned to Olsen who was checking over Solstice. Schultz had gone, probably gone to get Klink and inform him of the situation, which left the two Americans to talk without the German high command hovering over them.

"Well?" Hogan asked.

Olsen sighed as he removed the stethoscope from his ears and draped it around his neck. "Well, I think she's got something like the flu. The best thing we can do is get her fever down as soon as possible."

"All right." Hogan sighed. "Let's go and put her in the medical bay."

Olsen nodded, picking up the feverish woman and made his way towards the medical bay.

Things were happening too fast indeed….

-Line break-

Ezra scanned the empty hanger for any signs of patrol. His heart thundered in his chest from the excitement. Though not one to go against orders, Ezra felt that this was something he had to do. White Eagle was a part of the Rebellion family even though she had sworn several times, up and down, that she wasn't a rebel. But the _Ghost_ crew had rescued her several times, so they had some interactions with the masked bounty hunter. Though she never took her helmet off or turned the voice modulator off when she was around the crew, so Ezra had no idea what she looked like.

Of course, White Eagle had rescued them from time to time, repaying the debt she supposedly owed them.

Whenever she would board their ship (on that rare occasion), she and Kanan would have many conversations, which Ezra wasn't a part of.

Now, he, Kanan and the new mechanic, Bonga, were on their way to whatever backwater world White Eagle found herself on this time. But they had to sneak through the hanger and find a suitable ship. The _Ghost_ wasn't an option; Hera might need it in case there was a mission while they were gone, and her ship was the most familiar. There was only one option left: the old ship that Bonga had brought in.

"How's it looking, Ezra?" Kanan whispered. The blue-haired boy gave the hanger one last sweep with his eyes before turning around.

"Looks clear." Ezra announced. They were about to dash out of the shadows and towards the _Twilight_ , when Bonga spoke up.

"I think I'm having second thoughts about this."

Ezra and Kanan exchanged glances, apprehensiveness filling their gaze before turning to the worried Bonga. He was fiddling with his webbed hands nervously. Kanan sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose frustratingly.

"Look, we've come this far." He stated, trying to keep his voice low and calm. "Besides, I thought that White Eagle was your friend."

"She is but…." Bonga froze when he heard something behind him. A minute later, a light was on them, causing them to tense.

"Freeze!" A voice ordered.

"Rex?" Ezra asked. The light was moved to where it wasn't shining in their eyes. Bonga was thankful for that, his eyes were very sensitive to bright light. Once the Mon Calamari had blinked the spots out of his eye, the mechanic saw an old man, with a bald head and a white beard, wearing old white and blue armor. The two humans seemed to recognize him, seeing as they were suddenly hovering over them.

"What are you guys doing out here this late at night?" The man with the amber eyes wondered. "You're not doing anything you're not supposed to, right?"

Ezra gave a nervous laugh, scratching the back of his neck nervously. "Why…. why would you say that?"

Rex raised a white eyebrow, staring down the boy. Bonga suddenly was reminded of a grandfather chastising his young grandson after catching him with his hand in the cookie jar. But the only thing that was the saving grace in this situation, was that Ezra and Kanan knew this man. So, maybe with a little smooth talk, then the three of them would be able to sneak away, and him not tell anyone. However, the next words out of the older man's mouth halted all thoughts of the three of them getting away.

"I'm coming with you." He announced. There seemed to be a pause for a tense moment.

"What?" Ezra hissed.

"I'm. Coming. With. You." Rex repeated slowly.

Ezra rolled his electric blue eyes. "I heard you! But why would you want to come? I mean…it's gonna be dangerous!"

"Besides, we probably don't have any room." Bonga lied. Rex glanced between the three of them before holding up a hand.

"Firstly, I was bred for danger," He informed, counting down on his fingers. "Secondly, the only ship that is in working order that the Rebellion can't really use is the _Twilight_ and, as it turns out, I am the only one who knows how to fly it."

"We could learn…" Ezra muttered. Kanan sighed as he rubbed his face for the second time in the past thirty minutes. They really didn't have time for this. Any minute now, the other patrol was going to come around, and then they would be in hot water. The three of them were really fortunate it was Rex who caught them. He was more willing to go against Ahsoka's orders if he was talked into it.

"Fine." He hissed. Bonga and Ezra turned towards him with an expression that read, _really?_ Kanan ignored as he pushed on, "We don't have time before another patrol comes along and frankly, the more people there are, the likely chance we'll have an easier chance of finding White Eagle and getting back safely."

"Thanks, Kanan," Rex said before darting towards the old ship. Kanan, Ezra and Bonga were close behind him, their eyes scanning for the next patrol.

"Where to, Kanan?" The old man asked as he got comfortable at the controls. Bonga took his place in the co-pilot seat, doing all the pre-flight checks while Ezra and Kanan checked the rations on board.

"I think the planet's called E-earth." The brown-haired man said as he shuffled through all the ration packs. "Some planet in the far Outer Rim. Don't know much about it, though."

"Okay." Rex muttered. He turned to Bonga, his amber eyes glistening in the dark. "How are we looking on fuel, Bonga?"

"Uh." The Mon Calamari looked at the fuel gauge. "Looks good, but we'll have to make a stop or two."

"All righty." Rex rumbled. "Let's get going!"

A moment later, the four of them were exiting Atollon's atmosphere and entering hyperspace.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Solstice felt as if she was being dipped in molten lava.

Everything felt stiff and sore, and she was completely drenched in sweat. At one point, Solstice was teetering on the edge of consciousness and unconsciousness. She could vaguely hear and sense somethings, but then she would fall back into the darkness of unconsciousness. The point between consciousness and unconsciousness was a very thin line, as she was unable to pick when she was either or. There were voices that spoke orders, that whispered, and she felt something cool being placed on her forehead from time to time. It felt strange, the cool sent a shock wave through her system, but as soon as the shock passed, it soothed her very high fever. It reminded Solstice of snow.

 _Snow pelted her face, numbing it. The world was white and cold, and every breath she took burned her lungs and throat. But Solstice didn't mind. She enjoyed the cold, rather than the heat._

Another burst of heat made her whimper. Whatever was going on with her, it was getting worse. The voices that sounded vaguely familiar turned into the voices of those who Solstice thought had perished years ago.

Fox, the platoon leader for the squadron Solstice was a part of….

Lexus, a Senator's son with a strange fascination with her….

Master Jai'Kar, the one who took her under his wing….

They all spoke to her, telling her that she failed to save them, to keep them safe. Solstice muttered back that it wasn't her fault that they died, it was the Sith's, specifically Palpatine. Nothing could keep the voices out, but eventually they died down.

That's when Solstice opened her eyes. Everything was hazy, and sort of blurry. She stood on shaky legs and made her way out of the room she was in. Why was she in the infirmary? The young girl didn't feel like she was injured and her most recent memories were of her hanging out in her quarters in the Jedi Temple. Perhaps she came down with a fever; that would explain why she was burning up like she was being dipped in the lava of Mustafaar. She struggled to move, bumping her legs painfully on desks. When the young Jedi opened the door, Solstice groaned in shock when blinding cold and snow hit her.

How in the Force did she wind up on Hoth?! Or maybe it was the icy moon of Pantora with the Tals?

Solstice stumbled on, her vision blinded by the snow that continued to fall. Her face was numb, from the cold that suddenly embraced her feverish body. It felt good and yet, uncomfortable. Finally, her foot got caught on something and she went down. Solstice didn't have enough energy to catch herself, so she crashed into the ground. A moment later, her clothes were soaking wet, and she was shivering on the ground. Solstice started to pray, something that she didn't do often before she slid back into unconsciousness.

Back at the infirmary, Carter fought through the snow storm with Lebeau to carry some soup to Solstice. The brunette wasn't really doing well. Her fever had reached its peak, and though the men had tried everything in their power to bring it down, it just didn't budge. Hogan had suggested that they'd bathe her in ice water which they would do later that night when Hilda returned from a visit with her sister in the near by town. None of the men wanted to violate the trust Solstice had given them.

Carter shook his head as he brought himself back to the present. He froze, figuratively, when he saw the door cracked open barely. Heart thundering in his chest, Carter threw the door open, only to find an empty medical building. The bed where Solstice was supposed to be laying was empty, the covers strewn over the floor. Lebeau quickly put the soup down and started to search the room, finding nothing. The blond sergeant didn't hesitate to turn around and head straight towards Barracks 2. It took him a while because of the storm but eventually, he burst through the door, scaring everyone half to death. Hogan and Newkirk had their pistols out and pointed at him, Kinch and the others picked up the heaviest thing they could find and pulled it back. But they all relaxed when they saw it was only Carter. The small Frenchman came second, pushing the younger, yet taller man into the relatively warm barracks.

"Jesus Ca'ter." Newkirk breathed as he lowered his pistols. "Way to give a man a hear' attack."

"Sorry Newkirk," Carter breathed. The blond man turned towards his superior, his cheeks pink but not from embarrassment. "Something's wrong."

"What happened?" Hogan questioned. "What happened to Solstice?"

"That's just the thing, mon Colonel." Lebeau spoke up. With a shrug, he added, "She's missing."

"What do you mean 'she's missing'?" Kinchloe demanded. He, like Carter, turned towards Hogan, his dark eyes glistening with worry. "You don't think the Gestapo kidnapped her?"

"No." Hogan answered immediately. "If they did, Klink and Schultz both would've been blabbing about it. That and the weather's been too bad for anyone to travel."

"Well then, where did she go?" Carter demanded, in a fit of panic.

"She might be wandering around the compound," Hogan theorized. When all eyes turned on him, he elaborated, "Her fever was high enough that she maybe having some delusions."

"And she was muttering apologizes under her breath to someone named Jai'Kar," Kinchloe spoke up. The dark-skinned man couldn't get the sight of the strongest woman he had ever seen shiver and whimper, tears falling from her face as she sobbed out an apology. It broke his heart when he heard her plead to whoever this man was that she couldn't save him and 'it' wasn't her fault (whatever 'it' was).

"We better go and find her." Carter announced, throwing the door opened. All the men winced as a strong wind blew inwards, with large snowflakes following. Andrew tucked his chin down, while pushing himself out the door. Hogan ordered his men to stay there while following the youngest member of the group. He latched his hand around Carter's arm and directed the blond sergeant towards the Kommadant's personal quarters. Neither American knocked; they didn't want to freeze their butts off waiting for Klink to answer the door and then close it on their faces.

They found the Kommadant reclining on his sofa, a fire roaring and a glass of schnapps in one hand and a book in the other. The old man gave a start at the sudden interruption, his face going bright red at the sight of two of his POWs in his personal barracks, dripping snow everywhere, in the middle of a blizzard.

"What is the meaning of this?!" He demanded.

"Solstice is missing." Was all Hogan said. Klink raised an eyebrow, waiting for the man to continue but he didn't.

"Solstice? The woman who had a hundred-degree fever? The woman who didn't even know where she was?" Hogan nodded at all the questions. "And you said she was missing. HOW ON EARTH CAN SHE BE MISSING?"

"We think she's having delusions." Carter spoke up. "Her fever's high enough."

"Look, all we need is a couple of men to help search the grounds." Hogan stated, tersely. "I know for a fact that she's still inside the camp but all the guards here are trigger happy and I don't want to be the one to tell her family that she got shot because she had a fever and was wondering around the compound."

Klink sighed, rubbing his temple. Couldn't he go one day without having to day with Hogan or anything connected with the man? Apparently not. Sighing again, Klink stood and tied his robe tighter around his waist. "Okay. Okay. Schultz! I need you now!"

"Coming Herr Kommadant!" the fat barracks guard's voice echoed from the other room. A moment later, the guard came through, carrying a silver tray loaded down with cakes and small pastries. The guard had a large, goofy grin plastered on his face that dropped when he spotted the two POWs in the middle of his superior's personal barracks. All of the blood drained from his face at the sight and he started to sweat. He had _one_ job: keep the prisoners in their barracks. But what do they do? They come out in the middle of a blizzard, probably to kill the Kommadant and escape. While Schultz stuttered, the tray in his hand shaking, Klink halted him.

"Schultz, shut up and listen!" The Kommadant's harsh order shuts the larger guard up quickly. "I need you and Hogan's men to search the compound for Solstice."

"What happened to Solstice?" Schultz questioned, fear hidden in his whispered voice.

"She's wandering the compound!" Carter's voice betrayed his irritation. "She's sick and she might be dying because we're standing here talking!"

The other three men stared at the younger man with both fear and slight awe. Not once did Carter lose his temper, but when he did, you didn't want to be on the receiving end of his anger. This apparently one of those times. Hogan placed a hand on Carter's shoulder, to calm him down. It worked. The young man's breathing slowed and reason returned to his eyes. His cheeks burned with embarrassment as he lowered his head. Hogan saw his mouth move, and he assumed that the younger man was apologizing for his sudden outburst. Klink and Schultz just looked on with slight confusion but soon they roused themselves as time was of the essence. The Kommadant of Stalag 13 clapped his hands together, startling the two Americans, who chatted softly.

"Hogan! Rally your men and search the entire compound top and down." Klink ordered. "Your men will search the North half; my men will search the South half. Ja?"

"Sure." Hogan nodded. "Let's go, Carter."

The two left. Carter prayed that they would find Solstice in time….

-Line break-

 _Still lying feverish in the snow, Solstice dreamed of a time when she and her Master, Jai'Kar, were allowed a short amount of pause from the war (what actually happened was Solstice had crashed the ship they were flying to escape the Separatists). Their hyperdrive had been hit and they were forced into hyperspace, practically crash landing in the middle of nowhere on a dust ball of a planet. Thankfully, however, the communications still worked. As soon as they were able to, the two Jedi contacted the Jedi Council, informing them of the situation. And since Solstice's master was hurt, that took top priority. It helped that the Jedi Council didn't give them a deadline on when to return._

 _It had taken a month before their ship was flyable and her master was healed again. Seeing how it was going to be the two's last day on the planet, Solstice decided to take a walk. Jai'Kar, allowing his young apprentice to enjoy one last sliver of peace before returning to the fighting, agreed, telling her to be home before it got dark. Leaving everything except her communicator, Solstice strolled into town._

 _Bullfrog, North Dakota wasn't exactly on Solstice's top twenty places to revisit in the galaxy. It was small, and there was nothing exciting to do, nothing to pass the time. Of course, Solstice was too busy keeping her fighting skills up, helping Master Jai'Kar heal, and help him repair the ship to notice the lack of things to do. There were times that Solstice stayed out a little bit past curfew or she snuck out just to feel the adrenaline of breaking the rules to watch the stars. It was amazing how clear it was in the area where they were staying was. The abandoned little shack that they were staying in wasn't much, but the nighttime sky was so clear, it was absolutely breathtaking. But unfortunately, the town wasn't much. All it had was a movie theater, where grey-toned movies would be shown, a general store, several boutiques, and a bar. It was a pretty simple layout of a town if Solstice ever saw one._

 _Because of the secret the two shared, Jai'Kar and Solstice tried to stay out of town as much as possible. They grew most of their food on the plot of land they had acquired but whenever they needed something or parts that they didn't have, they would go into town. Because of this behavior, the two Jedi received the reputation of being recluses and very strange. But Solstice didn't care. She just enjoyed town._

 _However, this time was completely different. Snow fell softly on the town, while women, men and children in heavy coats strolled around. Apparently, it was around a planet-wide holiday (more or less) called Christmas. Festive decorations hung about, connecting the light posts with bright green streamers. Solstice took a deep breath, letting the cold air fill her lungs. Snow pelted her face, numbing it. The world was white and cold, and every breath she took burned her lungs and throat. But Solstice didn't mind. She enjoyed the cold, rather than the heat. The brunette teen was a native to a world where it was always a little cooler than most planets._

 _As she approached the middle of town where a giant tree sat, decorated with ornaments and something called tinsel, she picked up sounds of a scuffle. She turned, and found herself directly in front of an alleyway where the scuffle was coming from. A little farther away from the mouth of the alley was what looked a bunch of boys hitting a lump on the ground._

 _A lump that looked almost like another boy…._

 _Suddenly, Solstice was in action. Before she even knew what was going on, the young Padawan had marched up to the boys and shoved them off. There was another boy underneath the pile of bullies, his face bruised, eye swollen, and nose bloodied. He uncurled himself from the fetal position he had curled himself into, and glanced up at Solstice like she was an angel that had swooped down and saved him. The Jedi Padawan scowled at the bullies, her sharp blue eyes gleaming with barely controlled rage._

 _If there was one thing the Padawan hated the most, it was bullies…_

 _"Leave him alone!" She ordered, her tone sharp and used to being obeyed. The oldest looking boy amongst the group (who was probably around fourteen, or fifteen) stood, his brown eyes glittering evilly._

 _"Well, well, well." He cooed. His gang of boys gathered around him, while the blond boy on the ground quickly, taking cover behind her. "Looks like the little recluse has finally crawled out of her hole."_

 _"Your insults don't bother me." Solstice stated defiantly. Being a Jedi, she had been called worse, so 'little recluse' wasn't that much of a big deal. "I'll tell you what does bother me though: bullies who think they're strong just because they pick on other people."_

 _"And, what? You think you, a girl, is going to fight us?"_

 _Solstice smirked. "You better believe it."_

 _A moment later, three boys were attempting to bring her down, but Solstice wouldn't let them. She dodged the hits, the kicks and the words. But eventually, one of them struck a lucky blow and she went to the ground. But Solstice didn't let them tackle her. With one punch, the brunette Jedi was off the ground, grabbing the boy by the hand and running away. The boys in the alley fought to catch up as Solstice and the other boy ran as fast as they could through town, dodging pedestrians and automobiles. Solstice made sure to run in the direction of the general store, seeing how the cashier liked her. She barged in, almost ripping the door off its hinges. The old man gave a start, fixing his glasses._

 _"Ms. Winters?" He asked, taking in her and the boy's out of breath and ragged appearance. "Is everything okay?"_

 _"No Mr. Harper!" Solstice shouted. "We're being chased by bullies!"_

 _"Who exactly?"_

 _When Solstice didn't provide an answer, the boy next to her suddenly cried, "Thomas Markus and the Fulsy boys!"_

 _The man immediately went into action. He gestured for the two to go into the back. Solstice and the boy quickly darted into the place where they stored their things. The door behind them closed a moment as the boys entered the store. While Mr. Harper took care of the situation, Solstice sat on the floor, trying to catch her breath. The boy did the same, though he kept looking at her with those big blue eyes._

 _"What?" She asked._

 _"My name's Andrew. Andrew Carter." He said suddenly. Before Solstice could answer, Mr. Harper appeared. When he said the boys were taken care of, the two left. The brown-haired girl bid the boy goodbye before racing all the way back to the shack where her master was, barely making it before the last rays of the sun faded._

Solstice smiled drowsily, the fever taking hold her once again. She had somehow rolled on her back, staring up at the darkening sky. It was weird that she remembered that. The brunette bounty hunter allowed darkness to take hold of her once more.

"Forgive me, Ma-master…." She whispered before darkness surrounded her on all sides.

-Line break-

Kinchloe and Schultz shivered as they searched the back part of the barracks. They were about to give up when the dark-skinned man heard something. It sounded like someone whispering. Kinchloe turned around and scanned the area. Underneath a large pile of snow, it looked like…a hand!

"Schultz! Over here!" Kinch called. The German guard turned around, and seeing the hand too, helped the radio man dig the unconscious and feverish brunette out of the pile. Kinch pressed his half-frozen fingers against the woman's neck, breathing a sigh of relief when he found a steady (yet slow) pulse.

"Well?" Schultz asked.

"She's still alive." Kinchloe breathed in relief. "Barely. We need to take her back to the infirmary and warm her up. Quick. Schultz, go tell the others. I'll get her back."

"Jawhol!" Schultz said without thinking before dashing off. Kinch slid his arms underneath the woman's neck and legs and with a groan, picked her up. She wasn't that heavy, but Kinch could feel his bones getting old. The movement must've jolted Solstice from her unconsciousness. Her eyes flittered open, starkly dark compared to her drastically pale skin.

"Ma-master…...?" she whispered.

"How ya feeling Sol?" Kinch asked as he made his way towards the infirmary as quickly as he could.

"Cold…." She muttered. Her head twisted inward, taking in Kinch's scent before her face twisted and she started to fight him. "You're not him. You're not Jai'Kar…"

"No, I'm not." He soothed, holding on to Solstice a little tighter. "But I'm not an enemy either. It's me, Sergeant Kinchloe."

"I'm sorry…. I couldn't save you…." The woman muttered before she fell back into unconsciousness.

After three more heart stopping moments, the infirmary appeared in sight. The door opened as he reached it, allowing him easy entry. Hogan, Carter, Schultz and Olsen were there, waiting. Kinch placed the freezing woman back on the bed. Blankets were immediately thrown onto her, and soon it looked like she was buried underneath the pile, her head barely sticking out. Hogan, Schultz, and Kinch waited patiently (yet anxiously) for Olsen's diagnostics.

"She'll be fine." He announced. "If she stays here."

Everyone let loose a collective breath at the doctor's diagnostic. Hogan rubbed his head before rubbing his stubble. His heart could not take much more of this. Kinchloe, who found the young girl muttering, turned to his superior, telling him that he needed to talk about something with his eyes. Carter looked like he was about to faint from relief but managed to lean against the walls very heavily. Schultz, being Schultz, tipped his helmet to the prisoners of war, warning them to be back in their barracks by nighttime before leaving. The others followed the man soon after, making sure that a guard was on duty to keep Solstice from going anywhere. When they got back to the barracks, Hogan, who had seen Kinch's insistence back in the infirmary, immediately rounded on the dark-skinned radioman.

"What's wrong?" Hogan asked.

"Well, when we found Solstice she was rambling." Kinch explained. When he caught his superior's worried look, he quickly pressed on, "Not about our operation. But about something else, something that might've happened years ago."

Hogan was silent for a moment before turning to Carter. "Did Solstice say anything about her past?"

Carter thought for a moment, rubbing his hands together as he did so. "I think…. she said something about being a part of an order that was massacred or something fifteen years ago."

"Whatca talkin' abou', gov'nor?" Newkirk asked, coming from the other room with an armful of wood.

"Nothing." Carter immediately said, laying down on his cot. They watched as his breathing leveled out, before they heard light snoring. Hogan decided to take a nap too seeing how there wasn't a whole lot of stuff to do with the snowstorm. But for some reason, he couldn't seem to close his eyes. Speculations about Solstice's past kept him awake.

The young woman was an enigma wrapped in a riddle swaddled in a mystery. Everything about her was strange. It didn't make sense that someone like her could come from the sky, in a ship that even the Underground doesn't know about, with a power that she has yet to explain. Hopefully, though, whenever the woman woke up, Hogan would have to corner her and question her.

Finally, after another thirty minutes of waiting, Robert's coffee-brown eyes closed shut in an uneasy sleep.

-Line break-

 _"Are you sure of this?"_ A man dressed in all dark leather asked a kneeling figure.

"Yes sir." The kneeling figure, an amphibian, assured. "I will take care of these rebels myself and report back to you, Grand Inquisitor."  
 _"Very good."_ The Pau'an cooed. _"The Fleet will await your arrival. Contact me when you have taken care of the Jedi and Rebels."_

"Of course, sir." The amphibian lowered himself further until the communications ended. He sighed, rubbing his back with his webbed hands when he placed his personal communication device in his pocket. But he gave a start when the door swished open, revealing a tanned boy with electric blue eyes and hair that was dark enough to give it a blue tint. "Oh, Ezra. It's only you."

"Are you okay, Bonga?" the kid asked.

"Yeah. You just startled me."

"Oh, okay." Ezra paused for a moment before asking, "You wanna get some food? Kanan cooked some breakfast in the kitchen."

"Sure. I'll be there in a minute." When the young human disappeared, Bonga's smile dropped, and he moved back into his room, menacingly. Trying to be nice to these people was hard. He, of all people, should've taken a job as a higher up. There was nothing more demeaning as something as trying to gain people's trust by being nice to them. If it was up to him, the moment a person says that they were in support of the Rebellion or worked for it, he would immediately execute them on sight. But then, he would be targeted by the rebellion itself.

After putting on a mask for the people in the gulley, Bonga walked out towards the kitchen on the ship, where a smell of something cooking emanated from. It smelled good. Bonga's stomach, seemingly unaware that they were eating with the enemy, growled loudly. If the Mon Calamari could blush, he would. All eyes were staring at him as he walked in. Kanan seemed to be cooking a steak of some type, and by the smell of it, it was almost done.

Rex was at the galley table, going through a datapad. The old clone was deep into reading whatever was on the datapad. While the older males were busy, Ezra sighed, emphasizing his boredom. The blue-haired boy's face screwed up in thought before he dashed into the other room. A moment later, he came back with a handful of metal balls. He tossed them onto the table, Bonga interested in what he was going to do. Ezra concentrated on the metal balls, and Bonga watched fascinated as the metal balls rose into the air. The blue-eyed boy wiggled his fingers, the balls moving into a different position. The Mon Calamar's eyes went wide at the sight of the symbol of the Rebellion in the with the metal balls.

"Ezra!" Kanan's shout broke the young boy's concentration. The balls clattered to the ground. The brown-haired man didn't even look back as he asked, "What did we say about Force abilities at the dinner table?"

"Uh, don't do it?" The young boy answered with a smile.

"Atta boy." Kanan congratulated as he turned around. Bonga had to stifle a laugh. The man sounded more like a father. Rex placed his datapad down on the table, scooting his plate closer to him after the brown-haired Jedi put his food on it. The four of them started to eat in silence, each contemplating their objective.

"How much longer till we get to Earth?" Bonga asked, after a moment of silence.

"Not much," Kanan answered. "We need to talk about what we're gonna do when we land."

"Well, what do you have in mind, Commander?" Rex asked as everyone leaned in.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Solstice took a deep breath as she finished her routine. Her lungs burned with exertion but, in a weird way, it felt good. She only had woken up a couple of weeks ago, having recovering from a virus that was native to the planet. It had taken three weeks to rebuild her stamina, and another two to build her strength from there. Carter stopped by on occasion, but the former Jedi wanted some space after knowing that she had almost been bathed in ice cold water. Granted it was to get her fever down, but still! She didn't know the whole deal involving the ice-cold bath but she felt that was something that she didn't need to know. Of course, she was pretty hopeful that the woman in the Kommadant's office was going to be doing the bath.

There was a knock on her door as she placed a punch to the dummy the Kommadant was so grateful to install. She wiped her brow as she stood straighter and made her way to the door. The woman hoped it wasn't anyone important. Thankfully, it was only Schultz. The large guard smiled largely and warmly at her standing at the doorway, though his eyes went wide at the sight of sweat on her forehead.

"Fraulein Winters, are you getting sick again?" He whispered worriedly.

Solstice shook her head as she wiped her forehead. "Oh no. I was just working out. Is there something you need, Schultz?"

"Oh of course." The large guard sighed. "Kommadant Klink wishes to see you in his office now."

"I'll be there in a minute. Let me go and clean up a little bit." Schultz nodded and left, leaving the former Jedi Padawan to hurriedly rush to clean the sweat off her brow. She wrapped herself in her old robe before exiting the relatively warm cabin and into the cold air. The woman shivered violently, racing towards the Kommadant's office. It wasn't snowing, but it was still freezing. Though a relatively big fan of cold weather, she wasn't a big of fan of _long_ periods of cold.

"Hello Hilda," she greeted, once she stepped foot into the offices. The blonde-haired secretary gave a nod while she stamped the snow off her boots, which weren't really doing so well in this cold. "I'm here to see the Kommadant."

"Go right on in," she ordered in her heavily-accented voice. "They are waiting for you."

Solstice nodded and plastered on a smile, but on the inside, she was panicking. Who were 'they'? Was it the Gestapo or General Burkhalter? Her heart was pounding so loud, she was afraid it might've been heard all the way to the Rishi moon. Solstice casually slipped her hand into the pockets of her robe, where her blaster sat. Her hand wrapped around the hilt, expertly disengaging the safety with only one hand. If General Body Rolls did indeed come back for her, then she would have to fight her way out of the camp.

Though she suspected that if she did that, she would ultimately perish. But she would rather go out fighting then go quietly.

Heart still going a million miles an hour, the former Padawan slowly opened the door, only to breathe a sigh of relief when she only spotted Colonel Hogan and Kommadant Klink. The two males were practically staring each other down from opposite sides of the desk. Solstice reengaged the safety on her weapon, her hand sliding back out of her pocket when she was done. Her aquamarine eyes scanned the small office, searching for anything that might've resembled an ambush but nothing stood out.

 _So, it's just a regular meeting,_ the bounty hunter thought as she attempted to get her heart rate under control. Out loud she announced, "You wanted to see me, sir?"

"Yes." The man confirmed. Even when the Gestapo weren't there, his voice still sounded very shaky. Solstice supposed that's what happens when you work for a tyrannical government that was trying to take over the world and just about anyone could be your enemy. The Kommadant gestured to an empty chair, right next to Hogan. "Sit down, my dear."

Solstice nodded as she obeyed without a word. Hogan gave her that analytical gaze that he had been giving her since she woke up. Her guess is that she was too deep in her fever-induced dreams to realize that she was probably dreaming and/or talking about her life as a Jedi Padawan, including the massacre. It could be why Carter had been coming by more frequently, despite Solstice's thoughts on him being a gentleman and just making sure that she was okay. Though never in her life, Solstice would ever tell these people her past.

"Is there something you need, Kommadant?"

"We have several important guests coming over to visit the Stalag." He started to ramble. Solstice and Hogan both raised their eyebrow simultaneously, not sure where he was going with this. The brunette bounty hunter tensed, ready to run if he announced that the Gestapo was coming for her. But he didn't. Instead he said, "Accompanying General Burkhalter, is Doctor Kandar Serth. I do not want any trouble."

"What will we get in return?" Hogan asked. Solstice recognized that tone as something used in a bargaining way.

"What do you mean?" Klink asked.

"If we behave and not cause any trouble, we want an hour of extra light and two more weeks with hot water." Hogan bargained.

Klink's face scrunched up in annoyance. Solstice could see him trying physically to keep from shouting at the American. But the old man was able to speak without shouting, "Hogan, you are a prisoner of war, which means, that you are in no position to make demands."

But the silver-tongued colonel didn't miss a beat. "Are you sure about that? Because I know several people in town that will be willing to lend their showers to a couple of POWs."

"How do you know…." Klink started, but cut himself off. Solstice cocked her eyebrow. This man would have never survived the Separatist or Imperial regime. "I don't want to know. Okay, Hogan, I am willing to meet you halfway. An extra half hour with lights and one more week with hot water. _But,_ if any of your men step one foot out of line, the offer is off the table and the punishment will be severe."

Hogan considered it, but she already knew that, in his mind, he had accepted the offer. His smile a moment later confirmed it. Klink then went into a spiel about how everyone should be on their best behavior and how the barracks were to look spotless. Solstice found that she had been called because she would be attending dinner with the Kommadant, General Burkhalter and Doctor Serth. The brunette bounty hunter groaned rather loudly, eliciting her annoyance.

"Why me?" she demanded. The former Jedi didn't want to attend another stupid, kriffing dinner party.

"Because my dear, I just assumed-" Klink started but Solstice was on the war path

"You don't assume anything, Kommadant!" She shouted, pointing a finger at the old man, who winced as though he was about to be hit. "If this invitation to the dinner party is just an excuse to make sure I won't escape, then you are sorely mistaken, Kommadant. I will literally shoot myself with General Burkhalter's gun if I have to wear _ONE MORE KRIFFING DRESS!"_

Solstice slapped a hand over her mouth, her eyes going wide. Hogan, despite looking calm in outward appearance, suddenly had this panicked look in his eyes. Only too late did the bounty hunter realized that she might've almost spilled the beans on Hogan's operation. Klink, as oblivious as he was, seemed to notice something was off between the two.

"Hogan…. what is she talking about?" Klink wondered. He narrowed his eyes suspiciously, before asking, "And why are you looking at each other like that?"

The brunette-haired bounty hunter finally schooled her expression. "Nothing. Anyway, I am not going to do a fancy dinner party with a sleazy, old, creepy doctor for the sake of anything. I don't care if you threaten me with death or imprisonment with the Gestapo and General Burkhalter. I refuse to partake in anything that has me wear a dress."

"Well, if you don't do this then Hogan's men don't get their electricity."

Hogan glared at the Kommadant while Solstice growled, "Oh, you dirty bastard."

Before the scrawny man could retort, the door opened and Schultz entered. The large guard's eyes were wide as he scanned the room.

"Kommadant, there's something that needs your immediate attention." He stage-whispered.

"And what, exactly is that Schultz?" Klink demanded, annoyed. The sergeant leaned over and whispered in the old man's ear. Hogan and Solstice glanced at each other in question, their curiosity piquing when the Kommadant's eyebrows went up and he gasped in shock.

"What? Are you sure?" The man asked.

"Ja, Herr Kommadant." Schultz answered with a slow nod. Klink turned his attention to the two prisoners, his monocle teetering precariously on between his eye and cheek.

"I will give you two hours to decide, Solstice." He declared. "If you refuse this offer, all of the other offers are off the table, Hogan. So, I suggest you decide soon. Now, get out of my office."

The two were ushered out of the office. They noticed that the prisoner truck was outside Klink's office. Solstice froze when she felt the Force coming from the truck but was pushed forward by Hogan. There was sense of urgency in the pilot's body language, something that Solstice noticed immediately. She suspected that he wanted to listen in on the conversation that would no doubt supply the Underground with new information. And maybe the man wanted to talk to her about the deal Klink put on the table.

With as much purpose as they could, the two brunette prisoners strolled towards Barracks 2. As soon as they entered the barracks, Hogan's men almost immediately took the hint and made their way towards Hogan's office. Kinchloe turned on the coffee pot, and the group silently listened. Solstice narrowed her eyes as she leaned forward, trying to concentrate on the familiarity of the voices that pierced the static of the speaker.

-Line break-

Klink stared at the group before him. A young boy with dark blue hair, a twenty-something year old man with brown hair tied back in a ponytail and an old man with a bald head and white beard. All wore clothes that marked them as civilians but it was no surprise that they were caught because they didn't speak a lick of German. Of course, the man just sighed tiredly because the German high-brass had decided to give them to him.

He could feel the hairs getting greyer.

"So, who are you?" The old man at the desk questioned. None of them answered, instead looking around in different places. Klink sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose in hopes to quell the headache that was starting to rear its ugly head. "You don't want to answer the question? Then, you can each figure out who's gonna be the one to talk. Schultz, take them to the cooler. And make sure to place them in separate cells this time."

"Jawohl, Herr Kommadant." Schultz saluted before he ordered the three to move out of the office at gunpoint.

Ezra grunted in annoyance when the large guard tossed him in the cell. The young boy sighed as he started to pace. There was nothing that he hated more than being unable to do anything, like escape this cell. He cursed this half-brained plan to save the ally of the Rebellion. White Eagle was someone that helped the Rebellion more than anyone in the other cells. She managed to cause more chaos for the Empire and managed to steal as many plans that were helpful for the Rebellion than the _Ghost_ crew ever did during Ezra's early years with the crew.

After what seemed like hours, but probably was only minutes, Ezra sat down on the filthy floor, his feet aching from the pacing. The Force-Sensitive boy rubbed his head tiredly. Why didn't he think this part of the plan through? He, Kanan and Rex had hidden the ship, along with Bonga, after landing a couple of days ago. The three humans managed to find disguises and blend in with the local population, trying to search the area for the bounty hunter. The only problem with that was because neither human spoke the local language.

It was only after day three of searching for White Eagle, did they get picked up by the local military. They went through several channels of interrogation but refused to break. Even though they didn't know what the local military was talking about. Ezra sighed as he started to count the minutes as they ticked by slowly.

Almost before he was about to go crazy, the boy heard something shift near him. The blue-haired Lothal native glanced up and saw one of the floor tiles move. He blinked as it moved more, shifting a bit before a head appeared. It was an older man with black hair, blue clothes and eyes. The man glanced around, smiling manically when he spotted the young boy staring at him curiously.

"Ello there." The man greeted.

"Uh, hi?" Ezra greeted back.

"Lookin' a lit'le uncomfortable, eh lad?" The man asked. Ezra nodded, unsure if he heard him right. "Why don' you follow me, then? I'll take ya to ya mates."

The man's head disappeared. The blue-haired boy hesitated a moment before following him. He had to make sure that his lightsaber (which the guards stupidly didn't take) was there before leaping into the hole, making sure that the hatch was placed back. It took him a while to find the man, seeing how the tunnel was engulfed in darkness, but soon enough the orange-clad boy followed the older man. Ezra blinked in surprise when he entered the lighted area of the corridor. He sighed in relief when he spotted Kanan and Rex, talking to a brown-haired man in a dark brown leather jacket.

"Kanan! Rex!" he shouted in happiness. The two men turned, the brown-haired man smiling slightly when he spotted the boy. The boy all but tackled the man in a hug.

"Okay, I need air!" Kanan wheezed. Ezra sheepishly released his hold on the brunet man and turned towards the other brunet man with the brown jacket. He was studying the three of them closely, and Ezra could see the gears turn through his dark brown eyes.

"Go and get you know who." He whispered to a skinny blond guy that looked barely out of his teens. The blond dude nodded before scurrying off. The three rebels glanced at each other worriedly as the man turned back towards them.

"Alright. The name's Colonel Robert E. Hogan. I'm in charge of this little operation."

"Little?" Ezra questioned, his eyes roaming the network of tunnels. "This is…. amazing."

"Thanks kid." Colonel Hogan said, crossing his arms. They sat there in silence until the blond guy returned with a woman who had dark brown hair and brilliant blue eyes. She wore dark purple Mandalorian armor that had orange accents. The woman strode in with such swagger, Ezra would've mistaken her for the leader of the operation. Attached to her belt, she had a very powerful looking blaster and something that looked like a metal cylinder. Ezra narrowed his electric blue eyes. The armor and the design looked very familiar. But for the life of him, the young Force-Sensitive couldn't remember where he saw it.

"Ah, welcome to the meeting." Hogan greeted.

"What did I miss?" The woman questioned as she strolled over and sat down next to a dark-skinned man who was fiddling with a primitive radio set. She scrutinized the three rebels in front of her, as if she recognized them.

"We were just getting introductions out of the way." Hogan answered, turning towards the rebels.

"Ezra Bridger." The young boy answered.

"Kanan Jarrus." The brunet man chimed in.

"Captain Rex, at your service." The clone added. At the last one, the woman tensed and stood slowly. Then, in a blink of an eye, the woman unsheathed her blaster and had it pointed it at Rex, placing herself in between Hogan and the rebels. Ezra and Kanan, in response to the sudden show of force, had their lightsabers ignited, pointed at the woman's throat. That sparked a reaction from Hogan and his men. They all had primitive blasters, smaller and probably less powerful, pointed at them. Rex was the only one who didn't have a weapon out, and strangely, he didn't look the least bit worried. Instead, he looked sad.

"Step aside, Commander Dume." The woman ordered softly, not lowering her blaster. The way the woman ordered, the tenseness of her shoulders sparked the memory in Ezra's mind. He finally recognized the woman.

"Wait!" the former street rat of Lothal shouted. Despite the order, no one lowered their weapons. "White Eagle?"

"Specter 5." The rogue bounty hunter greeted sharply. "I won't ask again, Jarrus. Step aside."

"You know I can't do that."

"And why not?" White Eagle questioned. With a jerk of her head, she continued, "That man is a clone. He's a traitor to the Republic. His kind massacred our people, Kanan."

"Not him." Ezra defended. "They were all controlled by a chip. They had no choice."

"Of course, they had a choice!" White Eagle shouted. Tears started to form in her eyes and her voice quivered, but her hand never shook. It was trained on Rex's heart. "I saw them mow down Padawans, and Younglings. Children, Ezra, children. Some were barely old enough to understand what was going on. And they died. In fear, in pain and feeling betrayed. And his kind," she tensed, pointing the blaster at Rex, "are responsible for it."

Rex finally spoke, "You're Jai-Kar's Padawan aren't you?"

"I don't see why that's any of your business." White Eagle whispered.

"I fought with General Jai-Kar at the Second Battle of Christophsis." Rex softly informed her. "He was a strong Jedi."

"He didn't go down easily." A tear fell from her eye, streaking down her face. "He made sure to take a good number of you down with him. I promised myself that I would never forgive your kind and that if I came across any leftover soldiers, that I would not give you the mercy you never showed my kind."

Hogan and his men slowly sheathed their weapons. Ezra did the same, deactivating his saber and stepping aside. Kanan however didn't back down. It was amazing how the brunet Jedi and the former clone captain had grown over the course of a year and a half. But White Eagle had the same hatred for clones that Kanan had before they met Rex, Gregor and Wolfe. That was when he learned that time didn't heal old wounds, they only scarred over.

And White Eagle's wounds had just been reopened.

"Why don't we just talk about this?" a small man with a red shirt questioned. He had an accent similar to the Twi'leks. Maybe he was raised by Twi'leks.

"Solstice, I order you lower your weapons." Hogan ordered, pulling rank. His men were quiet as they watched the woman carefully. She kept it raised for one more, heart-stopping minute before lowering it.

"I'll be up in my barracks." Solstice announced sharply as she turned down tunnel. Ezra saw her whisper something to Hogan before disappearing down the tunnel, the blond, skinny guy following her.

"Well," The black-haired, blue-clothed guy spoke lighting something that looked like a death stick. "Tha' was interestin."

Kanan sighed as he deactivated his lightsaber, hooking it onto his belt. He rubbed the bridge of his nose, as if to stave off a headache.

"What was that about?" The dark-skinned guy asked as he leaned back in his chair.

"It's my fault." The old man admitted. "I used to be a captain in the army that massacred the peacekeeping group. Kanan here had the same reaction but he eventually came around."

Hogan sighed. "Well, we've got to go. Roll call's in a few hours. Unfortunately, that means you three'll have to go back into the cooler."

Ezra groaned but followed the man he followed earlier. The two tried to have a conversation. The young boy learned that he was Peter Newkirk, who belonged to the Royal Air Force, whatever that was. Ezra didn't give anything else but his name. The two continued the walk in silence, before coming to the ladder.

"Well, this is my stop." Ezra quipped, as he started to climb the ladder. "Thanks, by the way."

"No problem, lad." Newkirk assured him with a pat on his back. As soon as the tile was replaced, the British man bolted towards his barracks.

All throughout roll call, he noticed that Solstice wasn't all there. She had this scowl on her face, as if she was remembering something from her past. The RAF pilot glanced towards his mates, seeing if they had noticed her uneasiness and sudden hostility. They did. Once Roll call was over a few minutes later (it felt more like hours to Newkirk, standing out in that bloody cold), the man watched Carter immediately make a dive for the underground tunnel. Perhaps the youngest of them would be able to figure out what was going on with their mysterious teammate. Hopefully, the young woman wasn't in too much of a mood to talk.

Unfortunately, Solstice was definitely in a mood.

When Carter entered her barracks, he found her beating on the dummy ruthlessly. Stuffing flew as she impaled a knife hilt-deep into the cloth. The brunette woman growled as she yanked it out, kicking it and doing a flip as well. While the agility and strength would've at one point been admired by Carter, now, he was just slightly frightened. He let the woman get all her anger out before he spoke to her.

"Bad day?"

She glanced towards him, that anger barely contained underneath those aquamarine eyes. "Of all the people that the Rebellion could've sent, it had to be that loathsome being. They could've sent Hondo, or Lando. Hell, _Lando_ is a better alternative to a _clone_."

She groaned, plopping face down on her bed. Carter gently sat down on the edge of the bed, watching the woman carefully. They were plunged into silence before he asked hesitantly, "Wanna talk about it?"

Slowly, ever so slowly, Solstice picked her head up and turned to look at him. He gasped silently. The angle of her head had caught the light, making her aquamarine eyes look like they were teal instead. And they were absolutely breathtaking. He managed to memorize that look before the woman on the bed rolled over on her back and stared at him face on. She was pouting, but not in a hysterical way, but in a fearful way. Her eyes glanced over at the door and the floors, as if expecting someone to come through and start to fire blindly. Suddenly, a realization came to Carter.

"It was that old dude, wasn't it?" He asked. The way Solstice tensed, he assumed he guessed right. Gently, Carter started to stroke her hair. "Tell me what happened. Please."

And so, she did.

-Line break-

 _Solstice Winters and Master Jai'Kar strolled up to the entrance of the Jedi Temple. The night stretched behind them, the light from the inside of the temple beating it back. Behind the two, Fox and a couple of other clone soldiers from their division respectfully waited for Jai'Kar. He was headed to the Senate Building. The Ikototch had a bad feeling when Master Windu didn't answer his transmissions, so with a couple of troops, he was going to investigate._

 _Solstice on the other hand just wanted to go to bed. Though tired, she could feel happiness run through her. The war was finally over! After years of bloodshed and sorrow, Solstice looked forward to living the rest of her life in peace. Unfortunately, that brought up the question of what would happen to the clone soldiers. Was Chancellor Palpatine going to decommission them, or keep them in as a standing army, in case another galactic conflict broke out?_

 _Her master placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, sensing her turmoil. "It's going to be okay. I'll see to it that all the clones get the respect and honor they deserve."_

 _Solstice smiled slightly, before waving at her friends. "See ya around, Fox!"_

 _The grey-clad lieutenant just gave a two-fingered salute from where he was standing. The clones weren't really allowed in the temple for some reason, so they waited respectfully for her master. That is, until Fox brought his hand to his helmet, almost as if he was receiving a transmission. Then, he went utterly rigid, as did the others. Solstice noticed this, as she was still staring at them. Her master saw her face and turned, his brow cocking at the tenseness of his men's shoulders. The two Jedi didn't know who he was talking to, nor did they hear what the person said to him._

 _All they heard was his response: "As you wish, My Lord."_

 _Solstice then felt. The Dark Side of the Force suddenly engulfed the two in its chilly arms as the three soldiers turned around. The two Jedi barely had time to unhook their lightsabers from their belts and ignite them before the clones opened fire. Like so many times during the war, they fought, each like a component in a machine. Their movements were fluid and flawless, quick and graceful. Several times, Solstice shouted over the laser fire, trying to get through to her men. But for some reason, they didn't listen._

 _"Solstice, I need you to go," Jai'Kar ordered suddenly. The human teen just stared up at her master with disbelief._

 _"I am_ not _leaving you." She announced. Then, that's when she heard it. The marching of hundreds of other clone soldiers, all led by one figure clothed in darkness and a cloak. With much regret, Solstice plunged her saber into the belly of Fox, watching it sear through his armor before removing it and letting the clone soldier fall away._

 _"I'm going to hold off this attack while you go and warn the others." He said. Solstice knew that he wouldn't be able to hold off that many clone soldiers at once. But he placed a hand on her shoulder as he (lied) reassuringly, "I'll be right behind you."_

 _After a moment's hesitation, Solstice nodded before she dashed back into the temple, sounding the alarm to anyone that past. She was halfway through the temple when blaster sounds reached her ears. Not knowing where she was going exactly, or what her plan was, Solstice ran through every room and corridor she could find, hoping to find some Padawans, Younglings or Knights. With a couple of younger Padawans, she corralled some of the Younglings into the Council Room, know that was the safest place for them to be. One of the kids looked up with his big blue eyes, his blond hair ruffled as well as his grey tunic._

 _"Don't worry," she assured him, "Nothing's going to happen. I'll be back when the coast is clear." She turned to the younger Padawans. "Keep them safe. I'll go and clear a path for you to get to the hanger."_

 _"Thank you."_

 _Unfortunately, as Solstice jumped back into the fray, she realized that wasn't going to be easy. Clone soldiers prowled every area, every corridor, leaving the corpses of her friends and other younglings and Padawans in their wake. Anger coursed through her. She barely even registered igniting her saber and charging at the clones. The teen managed to get at least twenty down before they boxed her in and pushed her towards the library. Like a predator forcing its prey to box itself in, waiting for the kill._

 _Solstice shut the doors behind her, making sure they were locked, but she doubted that would hold long. She jumped out of her skin when a bony hand was laid on her shoulder, only to have her come face to face with a grim looking Jocasta Nu. The teen quickly explained the situation to the old keeper of the archives, only to have it silenced with hand in the air._

 _"Follow me." The old woman ordered. Solstice quickly followed. Her senses were on high alert, adrenaline making her body go rigid with fear, anxiety and panic. What was happening? She didn't realize she had spoken out loud until the old woman spoke._

 _"The Order is being destroyed," she informed her. "I received word from Master Kenobi and several other masters before communications were severed. The clones have turned on us and Palpatine is taking over."_

 _"What's going to happen to us?"_

 _"Those that escape the slaughter will live in fear, and most likely be hunted down." Jocasta's words had Solstice shaking in fear, like a leaf at the end of a harvest season, desperately hanging on to a branch. Desperately hanging on to life. She was silent as Madame Jocasta moved a section of the wall to reveal air ducts. Dry wind blew into her face._

 _"This will take you down to the hanger." Jocasta informed her, stiffly moving out of the way. Solstice peered into the darkness._

 _"What about you? Aren't you coming?"  
Jocasta only shook her head. "My time in this plane is short. Might as well going out in a blaze of glory. Oh, before you go."_

 _Banging at the door had started as Madame Jocasta came back, a holocron clutched in her hand. Solstice immediately started to refuse, but the old Archive keeper wasn't having any of it._

 _"Take this." She ordered, this time pulling the rank she rarely used. "The information that are in the holocrons must not fall into the hands of the Sith!"_

 _"I…." Solstice couldn't say anything, fear clogged her throat and clouded her mind. Finally, she bowed her head in submission before turning and plunging into the airduct. The shaft of light disappeared. Solstice could still hear the sounds of Madame Jocasta Nu crying out in pain as blasters ripped her apart._

 _The Temple Hanger was mostly empty, save for Master Ti directing a few remaining Jedi to their ships. Solstice hopped into hers and started it up, flying towards the stars as Coruscant faded into the distance. The Temple was on fire as she leapt into hyperspace._

 _Only then, as the fear and panic ebbed away into grief and sorrow did she suddenly remember those younglings left in the Council room. Then, suddenly, it felt as though her very soul was being pulled out of her._

 _They were no more._


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Carter could only stare deftly at the woman in front of him, his mouth agape, his eyes wider than quarters. Solstice stood on the other side of the barracks, her face showing evidence of crying. Several times during the tale, she had to stop as she bawled so hard it hurt Carter's heart. The brunette woman was as silent and as somber as he had ever seen her. No wonder she didn't trust Captain Rex….

"After that, I managed to disappear." Solstice's words were shaky yet loud and clear. She swallowed before continuing, "I built a life for a myself on a planet that thankfully no one had settled on yet. Rumors of the new Emperor had reached me by way of traders and smugglers. They said that some of the Jedi had escaped, building a rebellion that would ultimately take back the Republic. But…."

Carter didn't have to be Albert Einstein to figure it out. "But it was only a rumor."

Solstice only nodded. There was a pause before she continued, "I managed to get off that rock and find myself some work on Garrell. After a couple jobs, I became known as the notorious bounty hunter known as White Eagle. And since my first few jobs were assassinations of top Imperial Officials, I became public enemy number one, right next to the Jedi. How ironic, huh?"

The young American shook his head. "But I thought you said that you wouldn't do assassinations."

"That's the thing." She said. "When you're a bounty hunter, you have to figure out what your shtick is. Is it going to be smuggling? And if so, what are you smuggling? Are you going to be a hit man? Or a private detective of sorts? More often than not, most bounty hunters deal in smuggling and assassinations. But I guess I didn't have the stomach for those, so I stuck with the smuggling and private detective sort of thing."

Solstice sighed as she moved from the window towards the heater, holding her hands out to warm them up. Carter did the same, managing to catch her hands and fold them into his. When they locked eyes, Carter saw the world inside those beautiful eyes. He saw the moon, the depthless oceans and an entire world that seemed so much more advanced than his own. He wished he could experience that with her, but she was closed off, like a tomb that had no way in. Solstice gently wriggled her hands out of his, instead hugging herself as if she had a chill.

"I need to go tell the Kommadant that I'll attend his dinner party." She suddenly said. The woman nodded to him somberly before opening the door and leaving him there.

-Line Break-

The Kommadant was strangely overjoyed to hear that Solstice would go to dinner with him, General Burkhalter and Doctor Serth. She was doing it for Hogan, but also so she could assassinate Doctor Serth. He was a high ranking Imperial scientist with probably all the wealth and power he could dream. Why would he give that up to help the fledgling rebellion that had little chance in succeeding?

No, it would be much better for everybody if Kandar Serth died here on Earth. Solstice would burn the plans for the large space station, seeing how without the "good" doctor the Empire wouldn't have any need for the plans. The bounty hunter examined the poison before stuffing it in the pocket of her dress, which was given to her by Hilda. Solstice also had talked to Colonel Hogan about having a sniper, and a plan, ready. It had taken the man an extremely short time to come up with a logical plan. There was a knock on her door as she finished making sure that she had everything for the dinner.

"Come in." She ordered as she pinned one of the curls in her hair. The door opened, revealing Schultz, ready to escort her to dinner.

"Oh Fraulien Winters, you look so beautiful!" the guard complemented. Solstice lowered her head in thanks as he held out his arm. The brunette took his arm before they started to walk out. Solstice winced as the bite of the cold hit her, the thin material of the dress not really doing anything to keep out the cold. Thankfully though, the two entered the warm personal barracks of the Kommadant. Solstice rubbed her arms, trying to get feeling back as the Kommadant greeted her warmly with his date sitting on the couch, looking bored. The other woman had brown hair like hers but it was cut shorter, and done up in tight bun. She held a liquor glass in her hand, looking extremely disinterested.

"Ah, Ms. Winters, what a pleasure it is for you to join us!" the man welcomed with energy.

"The only reason I'm here is because you threatened me." Solstice corrected dryly.

"But still, thank you for joining us." He stated again, with slightly less energy. Gesturing to the woman on the couch, he introduced, "This is Helga Hamstrunburg. Her husband is a lieutenant in the Third Reich, who was recently transferred to the Russian Front."

The woman didn't move from her position. Solstice found herself blinking in shock at the name. She remembered using that name when she and Carter had stolen the plans from the hotel in Hammelburg. At first, the bounty hunter thought that Hogan had just made it up on a fly. But apparently it wasn't. Solstice distinctly wondered what Hogan would say when he found out the name wasn't a fake one. After a minute of an uncomfortable silence, Klink moved, ordering Schultz to go and get the appetizers. Solstice was about to ask about when General Burkhalter and Doctor Serth were arriving, when the door opened.

She felt a shiver of fear run up her spine when General Body Fat entered, immediately zeroing in on her with disgust. But the woman didn't back down or show her fear as the general removed his coat and threw it at Klink. The Kommadant then shoved it to Schultz, who placed the tray down to go and hang the coat on the rack. Behind General Body Fat, a well-muscled man in German uniform stood. He was young-looking, maybe in his mid-thirties, but he looked like a man in his prime. His muscles poked out from underneath his uniform, a black hair slicked back in a way that made Solstice feel breathless. His dark grey eyes seemed to examine her in a way that a predator would, assessing if the prey was worth it. For all the reports of Doctor Kandar Serth, Solstice never thought he would look so handsome. And yet be so ruthless. The General Burkhalter had a bombshell blonde hanging onto his arms. And the fatso was all too pleased.

"General Burkhalter! So good to see you, again!" Klink greeted.

"Klink, why is this prisoner out of the barracks?"

"I was invited by the Kommadant." Solstice answered with a fire in her voice. She did not take too kindly to being spoken about like she wasn't there. Then an excuse came to her mind, "He wanted to flaunt Germany's prosperity, so that I may go tell the others about it. It may dampen their spirits."

General Burkhalter sneered but eventually relented. The dinner then started. Doctor Serth didn't say very much throughout the dinner, but his steely gaze didn't leave Solstice. The bounty hunter was quiet herself, while the two German officers shouted each other. They tried to get her opinion about different things, mostly about how superior the German race was. She only gave something similar to a halfhearted agreement, though mostly she was just trying to figure out how to get the poison into Serth's drink without him or the others noticing.

After dessert, the six of them had moved into the sitting room. There was soft music playing as they, except Solstice and Serth, were drinking schnapps. Solstice was perched on a couch, her eyes clear as she examined the four drunken natives. Kandar Serth seemed to get bored sitting on the couch, so he stood and made his way over to Solstice. She examined the way he held his hand out, a smile on his face.

"Would you like to dance, fraulien?" He offered, his voice thick with a fake German accent. Solstice didn't let on that she knew that his accent was fake, but smiled nonetheless and took it. As they swayed back and forth to the music, much to Solstice's dismay, Kandar started to make small talk.

"You seem tense fraulien." He commented.

"Well, you would be too if you were in a prisoner of war camp away from home." She shot back.

"Indeed." He crooned as he twirled her. When she was facing him again, he continued, "And how did a woman such as yourself end up in a German prisoner of war camp?"

"It was a…. series of unfortunate circumstances." The bounty hunter commented vaguely.

"How unfortunate, exactly?" The man asked, with a wolfish smile.

Solstice gave him a disbelieving look. "You just don't give up, do you?"

"How about we start over?" Kandar asked after a short chuckle. "Guten Tag, Fraulien. My name is Doctor Kandar Serth, and I am a loyal German officer of the Third Reich. My hobbies include reading, artwork, nature watching and science."

"Nature watching?" Solstice snorted. "How much boring and generic could you get?"

"Oh, on the contrary, my dear. Nature watching is quite fascinating. You see things out in the wilderness that you don't see in the cities. Why, just the other day I saw a rather amazing creature."

Solstice cocked an eyebrow. The man was teasing her, playing with her, like how a predator played with its prey before it attacked. That much was obvious. But the way he spoke had her heart thundering in fear. Did he know…...? No that couldn't be. The Empire didn't know about her true identity. She made sure of that.

"What did you see?" She asked. Almost instantly, she regretted taking the bait.

Kandar's smile sent her heart thundering in her chest again. "A white Eagle."

Suddenly the lights went out leaving them in darkness. Klink and Burkhalter, and their dates, all drunk out of their minds, stumbled out of the room, the large general griping about how Klink's 'perfect prisoner of war camp' was falling apart at the seams. They left, leaving Solstice and Dr. Serth alone. Before the lights came back on, the brunette snatched Burkhalter's gun from where it lay on the table, loaded it, cocked it and pointed it at the man. However, when the lights flickered on, Kandar Serth didn't seem to flinch.

"So, you're with the Rebellion, aren't you?"

"No." She answered. "I was just paid to get rid of you and your work."

"And, uh, how much work does the head of a high-ranking Imperial scientist go for these days?"

Solstice smirked. "Oh, enough to make me set for life."

Slowly, the man raised his hands in the surrendering position. Solstice was going to have some fun with this.

"You know, the Rebellion isn't the only one who wants you dead." She commented, moving forward slowly. "The Allies of this planet want you dead as well."

"They're worried." He commented, a smirk on his face. "Their primitive weapons and defenses are no match for the power of the Empire."

Solstice scowled, her anger starting to bubble up like fuel. All it would take is one spark to ignite the fuel. "You are so arrogant. Much like your own Emperor. It's his arrogance that's going to destroy him."

"I read about you, Solstice Winters." Kandar Serth stated. "You were once a Jedi, a Padawan, apprenticed to Jedi Master Jai'Kar. And now, you're a bounty hunter, as well as Senator Organa's pet."

There was that spark.

Anger fueled her as she landed a punch on the man's face. With the Force, she moved a chair in front of the door, blocking anyone from entering.

"You're a sick son of a bitch, you know that, right?" She spat. When he was getting back up, Solstice landed another punch to his jaw. "I don't know what the Emperor force-fed you about the massacre, but there were children who died in the Temple. Innocent children, who didn't deserve to go out the way they went out!" Tears were streaming her eyes as she went, the shot glasses trembling at the Force-energy that seemed to radiate from her. But she didn't care. "They deserved to live their life, to make their mark on the galaxy. But they had all of that taken from them, because Palpatine was too greedy and too thirsty for power."

"No, please, you don't understand-"

"No, _you_ don't understand." Solstice snapped. She pulled him up and held him at his throat. The Jedi hissed in his face, "I had to kill my lieutenant, a man whom I considered a brother! I had to leave my master, a man whom I considered a father, behind to be slaughtered! And you and the Emperor's lackeys are nothing but robots, who are all ready to bend a knee to this man because you want money and power."

"I want to get out." Doctor Serth choked out. Solstice's bonfire of anger stuttered at this sudden confession. But she stood resolute, placing the anger in a stone brazier that was impregnable.

"Why should I trust you?"

"They have my family." He wheezed. Solstice stared into his eyes for another moment before letting him go, that anger finally blowing out.

"You have ten minutes to explain yourself before I pull the trigger." She ordered, starting the timer that was hidden in her dress. She held onto the pistol firm, aiming it at the man for extra measure. "Start talking. And I know when someone is lying to me."

"The Empire has my wife and oldest son, whose only twelve." He explained, the façade of a strong German officer falling to pieces. "I escaped with my daughter but the Gestapo have her. They've been forcing me to make these things for them, but I've put it off as long as I dared."

"Because their technology is too primitive." Solstice muttered. He nodded.

"But I keep running out of excuses." Serth said. "Both governments are keeping them alive for now. But I'm running out of time."

Solstice narrowed her eyes towards the man. She wanted, so desperately, to believe that he was lying. But prodding with the Force told the bounty hunter that the man wasn't lying. In fact, he was telling the truth. Solstice placed the safety back on the weapon before tossing it onto the couch with a sigh. She knelt down, still weary of any tricks he might pull, but the man just sat where he was, crying.

"Tell me the name of your wife and son." She ordered gently.

"Bellatrix and Borealis Serth." The man answered. "And my daughter, she's only nine."

"What's her name?"

There was a beat before he answered, "Tammara."

"Okay." Solstice sighed as she rubbed her head. "Do you know where their being held?"

"My wife and son are on Hosnian Prime." Serth answered. "But my daughter, she's being held hostage in Hammelburg."

"That's just a couple of miles away." Solstice murmured.

"They always make sure to keep her close by. Just so that I won't try anything."

These events were not exactly how she wanted it to go. Solstice walked over to the window, using the signal to call off Hogan and his sniper. She scratched her scalp absently, wondering exactly what she was going to do. Behind her, Kandar Serth was removing the chair from the door and returning it to position. And just in time too, as Klink, Burkhalter and their dates were coming back in after they had strolled the compound. The four of them walked in, even more drunk than they were before, which was strange.

Solstice whispered to standby for extraction before she walked out the door, going as fast as she can in a prison camp towards her barracks. Her heart was pounding a million miles an hour as she quickly changed into her flight suit and dashing into the underground tunnels. Hogan and his men were waiting for her, looking worried and at the same time angry at her. Kanan, Ezra and Rex weren't due to get out of the cooler until tomorrow afternoon, so Solstice could easily give the debriefing then. Of course, she had to also call the Rebel High Command for the go-ahead, but she figured she was on her own.

"What went wrong?" Hogan asked.

"Apparently, the good doctor wants to switch sides. From the Empire to the Rebellion."

"What a twist of fate." Kinchloe muttered.

"Yeah." Solstice sighed, agreed. "Only probably is, both the Empire and the Nazis have his family. The Empire has his son and wife, while the Nazis have his daughter."

"Well, we can't do much for his wife and son, that'll be up to your people." Hogan murmured. "What about his daughter? Where's she being held?"

"Believe it or not, Hammelburg." Solstice watched and felt the shock go through the group of men. She felt her mind go through several plans that could possibly work when Hogan started to do the same. She, Kanan and Ezra could go and get her the minute that the three of them get out. Rex could stay there for all she cared. Solstice still wasn't about to trust him.

"Alright." Hogan started, bringing her out of her thoughts. "We'll plan everything tomorrow night. Serth isn't supposed to leave here until Saturday. We have plenty of time to spring his daughter. It should also give us some time to do some recon as well. Do you think he'll give the location?"

"Oh definitely." Solstice rubbed her forehead. "While I'm down here, I need to go and contact the Fleet. I've got a mission for anyone that wants it in the Hosnian Prime system."

"Good luck with that." Hogan bid her. Solstice just chuckled.

"Thanks. Even though she isn't Force-sensitive, Hera's probably going to find someway to kill me on the other side of the galaxy." Solstice sighed. She turned around and made her way towards the tunnel where her ship was stored. It took a while to get in touch with the Rebellion, seeing how they were too far for her meager satellite signal but after diverting all power to communications, the image appeared of Hera Syndulla. And the Twi'lek pilot was angry looking.

"Don't give me that look," she ordered the pilot, despite the Twi'lek not even speaking. "It's not my fault that three of your people broke protocol."

 _"Actually, it's four."_ Hera corrected.

"I'm sorry?"

 _"After checking security cameras, the Rebel brass discovered that Kanan Jarrus, Ezra Bridger, Captain Rex and Bonga Liferift have taken one of the old freighters. It's last known protectory is planet Earth."_

"As I stated before, not my fault." Solstice examined her nails. "I've been trying to get my mission finished."

 _"And how's that going for ya?"_

"Pretty good." She answered. "I found Doctor Serth. And get this: he wants to switch sides."

The shock on Hera's face had turned her upside-down day right side up. In her line of work, you couldn't afford to be surprised and had to be ready for everything. Solstice would bet her life that she just dropped a bombshell. Hera recovered her facial expressions rather quickly.

 _"Really? Anything he wants in return?"_

"Only that he wants his family returned to him." The brunette human female answered. "We'll get his daughter, who is near my current position, but his wife and son are being held in the Hosnian Prime. No real location, but you guys can get any recon."

 _"Okay, then. I'll inform Fulcrum as soon as possible."_

"Appreciate it Hera. White Eagle, out." Once the transmission was severed, Solstice leaned back in her seat, rubbing the bridge of her nose. She was gonna have grey hair by the time she hits thirty-five. Speaking of which, Solstice quickly pulled up her calendar, trying to make sure that her dates were correct. And they were. In a few days, it would Solstice's twenty-sixth birthday. Even though she never really celebrated her birthday, Solstice was looking forward to this one.

The brunette sighed as she laid down in her barracks with a sigh. In another time, Solstice would've been elevated to the position of Jedi Master, the war a distant memory. Peace and prosperity had returned to the Galactic Republic and she would've just taken on an apprentice. But, instead, she was a bounty hunter, who was now trying to smuggle a German-Imperial scientist out of Germany and into the hands of the Rebellion, while also trying free his family.

All in all, she was about have the best birthday in her memory.

-Line Break-

Hera moved through the rebel command ship quickly. Her head was pounding as she went through what she remembered her conversation with White Eagle. And remembered the fact that four of her crew had gone, without permission to rescue White Eagle. The high brass wasn't very happy to hear that the four of them had gone. There was something, however, that had the high brass running around like chickens with their head cut off the moment that the news reached them. They had initiated protocol that they would when they discovered a mole.

"I'm here to speak with Commander Sato and Fulcrum." Hera said the guard posted outside the command center. The guard soundlessly jerked his head, ordering her to go ahead. When the Twi'lek pilot entered, she was shocked to see an argument going on. Ashoka was in the far corner, watching Sato, Mon Mothma and Organa going at each other.

"The stunt that the four of them pulled was unacceptable!" Sato cried. "They should be court-martialed."

"This isn't the Empire, Commander Sato." Mothma stated coolly. It was strange that the red-haired senator sent shivers down Hera's spine even when she wasn't shouting. "We do not punish men for bravery or comradery."

"With all due respect, Senator Mothma, this is still an army. The four men not only disobeyed protocol, they took with them a traitor."

The two senators stood straighter suddenly. Ahsoka also blinked in shock. Hera's mind was going a million miles a minute at the news.

"What are you talking about, Commander?" Organa asked.

"We did some background checks on Bonga Liferift." The commander of Phoenix squadron informed them. "All of our informants and spies on Garrel have vanished after sniffing around his workshop. It cannot be a coincidence."

"Perhaps we were too quick to allow him access into the Rebellion." Mothma muttered as she rubbed her forehead.

"What is it, Captain Syndulla?" Ahsoka asked, as the moment of silence stretched on. Hera snapped to attention as all eyes turned on her, moving forward.

"I have received word from White Eagle." The Twi'lek Pilot stated. "She has made contact with Doctor Serth. According to her, the Imperial scientist wants to switch sides. Only problem is, the Empire is holding his wife and son hostage."

"Where?" Bail asked.

"Hosnian Prime."

The senator to Alderaan sighed as he rubbed his head. "Okay. Send out a reconnaissance team. I expect results forthwith."

Silently, the man walked out. Everyone followed him with their eyes. The air was tense as he left, only to have Sabine enter. Her recently repainted armor and redone hair looked different and it strangely fit her. The Mandelorian explosive expert's amber eyes scanned the room and seemed to pick up on the growing tension in the room.

"You wanted to see me, Hera?" She asked respectfully.

"Yes." She stated. "Get Zeb and Chopper. Order them to prepare the _Ghost._ We have a mission."

"Anywhere specific?" The young woman asked.

"The Hosnian Prime system." Was all the Twi'lek pilot said before she walked out of the room.

-Line break-

Back on Earth, Bonga sighed as he rubbed his webbed hands together to preserve what little warmth he could. The last orders Kanan gave him was to keep the _Twilight_ off to reserve the very limited fuel that the old clunker had. He sighed as turned towards the space heater that lay in the corner. If only the ship was running! But he refrained himself from turning on the ship. While it would be fun to see those no-good rebels' faces when they found that they were stranded on this primitive planet, he still had a job to do here.

He growled. If only the Empire would elevate him into a more studious position. But the Empire only valued humans more than they did other species. Of course, there was the case of that Chiss male, but it seemed that he was from a higher born status. Hopefully though, this ultimately put the Mon Calamari on the same level as the Chiss male.

Now all he had to do is prepare himself for the kill.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Any time Solstice is being referred to as "white eagle" it will be from either Kanan, Ezra, or Rex's pov. This chapter is mainly Ezra's though.**

Chapter 10

Ezra Bridger blinked at the noise that suddenly infiltrated his dream. He cracked an eye open, groaning when he saw Corporal Langenscheidt ordering all the prisoners to get up. It was still very early in the morning, early enough that the sun hadn't even risen yet. All Ezra wanted to do was lay in his relatively warm bed and sleep the day away. But all of that was ripped away when his blanket was ripped off his body and the young corporal yelling in his ear. The blue-haired boy sat up, throwing the man daggers through his gaze, before leaping off the top bunk in compliance. He glanced around the room, noting that everyone was doing the same, only with a lot more grumbling. Ezra expected the young man in the German uniform to shoot the men throwing snarks and snides at him, but instead Corporal Langenscheidt just repeated his orders.

The Lothal native winced at the bit of the cold that hit him when he stepped outside. He stood in rank, his eyes glancing around. He was several feet shorter than most of the men around here. Of course, he was by far younger than most of the men here. The young boy stuffed his hands into the pockets of the too-big coat that Colonel Hogan provided him when he got out of the cooler five days ago and lowered his head. He was thankful for the fact that he had something to keep out the chill, otherwise he would've frozen in those civilian clothes.

As Ezra snapped his spine when the Kommadant came out, his eyes drifted around the compound, despite everyone around him slouching. Two barracks over, he spotted Kanan and Rex, heckling the guards along with the other prisoners. Kanan seemed to be having a ball with messing with Schultz. Then his gaze switched over to Solstice, all by her lonesome self. Her mid-back length hair moved in the slight, extremely chilly breeze. She stood stiffly, her eyes forward, unseeing.

The bounty hunter was grateful for the risk that the four of them risked court martial to get her, but she said that she didn't want to get involved in the Rebellion. Ezra hadn't gotten the full story out of her yet, but he assumed it was the same story with Kanan.

 _"Besides," she had said after telling them off, "I have my own mission to accomplish."_

"Schultz, reeeeepppppoooooorrrrrrtttttt!" Klink ordered, tearing the young boy out of his thoughts.

Schultz clicked his heels before stating, "Herr Kommadant, all present and accounted for."

"Very good." Klink congratulated. The overseer of the prison camp gave them all a talking too, something about how good his people were doing in the war before saying, "Disssmiiiissssseeedddd."

The prisoners broke off from the lines and started to mingle around the area while the single sun rose into the sky. Ezra yawned, heading back towards the barracks to get a couple of minutes of sleep before he felt someone tug on his elbow.

"We have work to do Ezra." Solstice stated as she discreetly pulled him towards Barracks 2. Ezra groaned but complied. White Eagle told him to go on in, while she took the underground tunnel. It would look suspicious if she was seen going into a barrack full of men. The boy nodded and headed on in, collapsing on the nearest bunk in exhaustion.

"You alright there, Ezra?" Kanan asked from the table. He and Rex were eating something the small man named Lebeau called a soufflé. It looked and smelled delicious. Ezra managed to crawl forward sneakily, taking a small spoonful from Kanan's bowl. The brunette male caught him and force grabbed Ezra's spoon. But the young boy was quick to recover. Soon, the two engaged in a Force-tug-of-war that gained the attention of the other men in the barracks. They all gawked and cheered, and Ezra could see some money changing hands in his peripheral vision. But he was focused on getting something that didn't have sawdust in it.

They were so enraptured by the competition, that they didn't even hear someone knock on one of the bunks. Kinchloe turned his attention from the competition to open the hidden entrance. It was White Eagle. She was about to ask the man something but stopped when she spotted the two other Force-Sensitives, with the members of Barracks 2 shouting and urging them on.

"I don't even want to know." She declared as the dark-skinned radioman helped her up. The brunette then nudged the green-clad man playfully. "Watch this."

Kinch watched the woman hold out her hand and close her eyes in concentration. The hair on the back of his neck stood straight up as if the air became charged with electricity like before a thunderstorm. To his shock, the spoon handle smoothly turned towards White Eagle. A moment later it came flying towards the brunette woman. She caught it, spun it around and popped it into her mouth before the other two could do anything. Solstice's face scrunched up in delightful thought.

"Excellent as always, Lebeau." She commented before tossing the spoon back to Kanan.

" _Merci, Mademoiselle."_ The short man said as he dished her a bowl. Ezra scowled at her as White Eagle sat down.

"So, are you two always so childish with your powers?" White Eagle asked as she dug into her soufflé.

"Not always." Ezra answered as he sat down next to Kanan. White Eagle chuckled softly, though the smile and light in her aquamarine eyes died when they drifted over to Rex.

"Where's Hogan?" The brunette woman asked, suddenly.

"Right here." The brunet man announced as he came out of his office. He examined the scene in front of him. And boy was it an odd sight. "Okay, we start planning the good doctor's daughter's break."

"I've got several plans already but I just need you to give them the once over." White Eagle announced. Rex whistled impressively.

"Now that's what I call thorough." The old clone commented. Ezra noticed how White Eagle just eyed Rex before turning to Hogan.

She stood, whispered something to Hogan and made her way towards the door. But as she placed her hand on the door, the woman turned around. "Oh, I contacted Captain Syndulla to inform her of the plan."

"Uh oh." Kanan muttered. "How mad was she?"  
"Pretty mad." White Eagle answered, scratching the base of her neck. "I swear, I thought she was going to reach through the transmission and strangle me. If I were you, I would get her some chocolate when you get back, or something nice. Just to be sure."

"What else?" Ezra asked.

"She said that Bonga is here as well."

"Yeah, he was sorta the one to convince us to go and get you." Ezra answered, scratching the back of his neck. He adverted his gaze from the tense glare of the bounty hunter in front of him. Kanan, as well as the other men, adverted their gaze as well. Rex was the only one to not advert his glare. The old clone took a sip from the cup a blond man handed him.

"Only you two would be so reckless to allow a civilian to come with you." White Eagle sighed as she rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Where is he now?"

"With the _Twilight._ " Ezra answered.

"And where is the _Twilight_?"

"Several miles or so from here in a cave." Rex answered. The bounty hunter glared at him, a sneer crossing her features.

"I didn't ask you _, Clone_." White Eagle snapped. She turned her attention back to Ezra, who looked at her with a shocked expression. Her hatred of Clones was something that seemed deeply rooted and probably going to be impossible to fix. Maybe if he discovered why White Eagle hated clones, then maybe he can help her get over it like he did with Kanan. "We'll have to find a way to contact him, have him get the ship ready."

"Anyway, how's the plan to get the good doctor's daughter out of the slammer going?" Carter asked a little nervously as an uncomfortable silence descended on the barracks.

"I managed to get a little information out of Schultz, and Doctor Serth, and found that the plant that they're holding his daughter is heavily fortified." White Eagle borrowed a napkin from Newkirk and a pen from Kinchloe. The brunette woman expertly drew a rough sketch of the plant that the Germans were holding Serth's daughter. She placed several dots around certain areas and made a dotted line around the perimeter of the drawing. Ezra leaned over the table and watched closely as the bounty hunter started to explain.

"According to Serth, the entire plant is surrounded by barbed wire, and two guards here, here and here." White Eagle gestured to the dots. "The guards alternate every five hours, which means we have a thirty percent chance of succeeding if we plan it right."

"Only thirty?" Ezra joked.

"We've worked with lower chances of success." Kanan chimed in.

"Same here." Lebeau added with a chuckle.

"Anyway," White Eagle's voice cut through the lighter air, "His daughter is being held smack dab in the middle of the plant. The best route to take, according to Serth, is to go straight through the front gate."

"Simple enough but how do we know that they haven't moved his daughter?" Kinchloe asked.

"They haven't moved him." She answered with a shrug. "Serth said that when he's moved, she's moved, so we have until he's moved to rescue her."

"What about the plant?" Lebeau questioned.

"That's also simple." White Eagle answered. She tossed up a metal sphere with a smirk. Ezra felt himself go rigid at the sight of Sabine's chargers. Not only did it hold a punch, it also could paint the sky. Literally. The last time the Mandelorian used one of the those was during the _Ghost_ crew's last solo mission before joining the rebellion. A private had gotten curious about them, and nearly blew a colorful hole in the command ship.

"When did you get that?" Kanan asked, sounding as anxious as Ezra felt.

White Eagle smirked, tossing the grenade into the air, causing the three of them to wince whenever it landed in the palm of her hand. "Oh, I pinched it off Sabine the last time I worked with you guys, as well as some exploding paint. And I've been dying to try it out."

"Okay, well just don't play with it in here." Kanan ordered, using the Force to take it out of the hand of the woman. She just looked on with a half-cocked eyebrow as the sphere floated out of the air and landed in Kanan's hand.

"That's how we take care of the plant, to answer your question Lebeau." The woman declared, pointing towards the explosive.

"Blimey." Newkirk sighed as he took a breath of his death-stick. Ezra raised an eyebrow as he blew out a stream of smoke. "This'll be a close one, colonel."

"I know." Hogan agreed. He looked to be deep in thought but shook his head. "Solstice, do you mind leading the operation?"

"Does that mean I get to choose my team?" She asked excitedly.

"Yes."

White Eagle looked like she was a kid getting the hoverbike they wanted for their birthday. "Oh yes! Uh, Carter, Kanan, and Newkirk you'll be with me."

"Are you sure that's enough?" Rex asked.

All the sudden, White Eagle drew up in on herself. She eyed the clone closely. "You might've done things differently in the 501st, but I can get things done just as well with three people."

Rex stood up slowly, his amber eyes glowing with just barely controlled rage. "I don't know what your problem is but you better put it behind you."

"And how can I do that? Huh?" White Eagle was sudden in Rex's face, anger clear on her features. "How can I put behind me the fact that your kind massacred the Jedi? Or how can I put behind me the fact that the entire Galactic Senate placed Emperor Palpatine in power, even when he massacred innocent people? How can I ignore the heart ache that I suffered when I had to execute my own squadron? Men that I called brothers!"

Kinchloe and Carter had moved to keep the woman from launching herself at the old man. Tears were falling down her face as her shouting grew louder. Lebeau was at the door, keeping an eye out just in case the guards heard her shouting. Rex didn't do anything, just glanced down and looked ashamed. Kanan and Ezra quickly stood and made to intervene.

"White Eagle, Rex didn't have anything to do with the massacre!" Ezra informed her. "The clones…. they all had chips in their head that forced them to do it."

"I don't care!" She shouted back.

"Calm yourself, Eagle." Kanan ordered. The entire atmosphere of Barracks 2 became peaceful and calm. Everyone seemed to relax. Only, it had the opposite effect on Solstice.

"Don't you dare try to use the Force on me, Kanan Jarrus!" She ordered. The air suddenly prickled with electricity as anger and calm met head on. Just when it became unbearable to breath, White Eagle left, storming out of the barracks and slamming the door for good measure. Everyone just glanced at the old man, eyeing him closely. None of them really understood what just happened but they got the jest of it. All they knew was that Rex and Solstice should not be working together at all. A few minutes passed in complete silence, until Schultz appeared. The large guard almost walked in on a discussion involving the mission. Kanan had just finished explaining how much damage the explosive paint and charge could do to that factory alone, when Lebeau announced that he was coming.

Thankfully, Kanan managed to finish his explanation. Unfortunately, Schultz heard the last part about the factory going sky high. The large guard looked like he might faint.

"Colonel Hogan?" the guard asked slowly.

Hogan, the picture of innocence, replied, "Yes Schultz?"

"Why are you talking about blowing up a factory?"

Ezra felt himself go tense instinctively. He felt like he had to be prepared to go down fighting if the man dragged all of them to a firing squad. Looking around though, the young boy was surprised to see the rest of Hogan's team so relaxed, as if they weren't just found out by the large guard and maybe get executed for attempting to escape and blow up a factory.

But as he found, Hogan was rather quick on his feet. "We weren't talking about blowing up a factory, Schultz. You're becoming too paranoid."

"Yeah, Schultzie." Newkirk chimed in from where he was shuffling cards at the table. "Besides we're prisoners o' war. How are we supposed to blow up a fac'roy?"

"How about a taste testing my soufflé, Schultz?" Lebeau asked before the large guard could ask any more questions. The diversion shouldn't have worked in Ezra's mind. It was obvious, even to him, that the way the conversation suddenly made a nose dive away from the conversation the guard overheard was too awkward, too jerky. But strangely, the guard didn't seem to notice. Instead, he immediately strolled over to the stove happily.

Schultz ate half of the soufflé before he left. Hogan and a couple of men, including Ezra and Kanan, left to start a game of volleyball. The two Jedi easily learned the game soon enough, having been placed on Andrew's team. The blond sergeant was a very good teacher.

After a lunch of sawdust bread, Ezra played a game of sabacc with Kanan. They borrowed Newkirk's card deck. It took a little tweaking, but eventually they managed to use the earthling's deck for their game. Newkirk watched them with a raised eyebrow in interest. Ezra examined his cards, an eyebrow quirking as he laid it down. Kanan also raised an eyebrow as he examined his cards, only he was smirking quite mischievously.

"You're probably going to hate me, kid." Kanan suddenly announced.

Ezra scoffed. "Hate you, Master? _Never_."

"Okay. If you say so." Kanan laid his cards down on the table, causing Ezra to gasp in shock. Then his face scrunched up anger.

"You…. You used an Idiot's Array?! But that's not…. what?!"

Kanan chuckled at his Padawan's disbelief. He put his hands behind his head as he relaxed as much he could in a prisoner of war camp. "What can I say kid? The Force works in mysterious ways."

He moved forward to collect the prize, several chocolate bars and a couple of death sticks (but he gave those to Newkirk) when Ezra saw something sticking out from underneath his master's glove. It came loose as the brown-haired man continued to draw the chocolate bars closer. Eventually, it was sticking out so much that Ezra made a grab. He was quick enough that Kanan didn't realize what was going on until the card was finally freed from its hiding place.

"Hey!" The man protested. He made a grab for the card but years of pinching stuff off people had Ezra moving back quickly. The blue-haired boy examined the card before holding it up to Kanan, his face angry. His master chuckled uneasily. "I can explain…."

Ezra just scowled, mimicking Hera whenever she was angry. Arms crossed, hip cocked out, eyebrow raised (specifically the left) and lips pressed in a slight pout. The effects were immediate. Kanan backed up in slight fear but soon recovered. The man just chuckled to himself, giving Ezra the look Kanan would use in reply to Hera's face. The two sat there, until eventually Ezra couldn't help himself. He busted out laughing. Kanan did too, and the two ended up falling on the ground, tears falling down their face. Newkirk looked on with a curious expression, obviously confused. Unfortunately, the two Jedi's laughter didn't last very long.

"HEY!" An angry voice cried. Both Jedi and the RAF pilot stopped what they were doing to turn around and saw a large man walk up to them. The man walking forward wore green fatigues, large boots that were all but caked with mud. His hair was closely cropped but his face had stubble on it, which made it look larger and more angular than it probably was. And that big man was heading towards them.

"Oh boy." Ezra heard Newkirk mutter.

"What? What is it?" The boy asked.

"Sully McCarter." The blue-clad man answered as he lounged in the chair vacated by Kanan.

"Who's that?" Kanan answered. The man got his answer a moment later. Sully McCarter marched up to Kanan. Kanan recoiled not form the large size of the man, but the anger practically oozing from the man.

"Whatcha laughing at?" The man demanded, poking Kanan's chest angrily. "Dontcha know there's a war on?"

"Why don't ya bug off McCarter?" Newkirk ordered before Kanan could answer. But Sully just looked at him with a twisted look.

"So, where's that woman of yours Newkirk? I thought that she would be draped on every man here." He glanced over at Ezra, who was glaring at him. "Though, I'm surprised that she hasn't gone after you, short fry. You know? Of course, she's probably doing the Kommadant and all the Krauts in this joint-"

"That's enough!" Ezra shouted. He wasn't going to stand here and let this person bad mouth White Eagle. Kanan placed a hand on his shoulder, silently ordering him to reign in his anger. The boy did, though Sully continued.

"Oh, little fish got bite." Sully got in his face, making it hard to keep his anger in.

"Leave them alone, Sully." White Eagle's voice suddenly cut through the tension. She, along with Colonel Hogan were walking up to the group. Ezra also noticed they had gathered something of a crowd, the prisoners and guards looking on with curiosity. He had to bet that the prisoners would most likely urge on a fight that was no doubt brewing between Sully and White Eagle.

"Well, if it isn't the whore of Stalag 13." The man commented. He chuckled at his own, not so good joke. Hogan visibly bristled at the comment, but it seemed to flow right off White Eagle.

"What's going on over here?" Hogan asked. Ezra visibly shuddered when he saw the anger behind the seemingly calm Colonel.

"Nothing boss." Sully lied. "Just having a little fun with the newcomers."

"Now, we both know that's not true, Sully." White Eagle stated with a knowing tone. "Why don't you tell us what's really going on?"

"I don't answer to whores." Sully spat.

"But you do answer to me." Colonel Hogan corrected. The two dominate males got in each other's faces, but White Eagle placed herself in the middle of the two.

"How about we settle this, the old fashion way?" The bounty hunter suggested. "I challenge you to a wrestling match."

Sully scoffed. "You? You're like one-hundred and ninety-nine pounds."

"Actually, I'm two hundred." White Eagle corrected, sounding rather offended. "And I can easily put you in your place."

The man smirked. It caused a shiver to go down Ezra's spine as it reminded him too much of the Grand Inquisitor. "You're on. Meet me in the middle of the courtyard after lunch. Don't be late."

White Eagle watched him go with a scowl, and Ezra did too. The bounty hunter suddenly sighed deeply.

"Are you insane?" Hogan questioned as the woman sat down, rubbing her head.

"Yeah." Ezra agreed. "I mean, that guy's as big as Zeb and probably as strong as him as well."

"And I've wrestled with Garrazeb Orrelios, the first time we met, remember Kanan?"

The male Jedi visibly winced as if remembering something bad. "Oh, I remember that. He came out with a lot of bruises."

"So, I think I'm okay." She pointed out. "The only problem is, what will happen when Klink finds out?"

"If you make it look like you didn't start it, then maybe the Kommadant would be lenient towards you." Hogan suggested. White Eagle shrugged before she started to walk away. Ezra, feeling that he needed something else to do, decided to follow the bounty hunter to her barracks.

"So, this is where you live." Ezra commented as he plopped down on the bed. "Cozy."

From where she was positioned behind a sheet, Ezra heard her chuckle. "Not as cozy as a room on the _Ghost,_ I bet."

Ezra sat up, the silence heavy. "Why do you hate Rex?"

The movement behind the blanket stopped before resuming. Ezra waited as patiently as he could. But when the woman came out, in what he assumed to be traditional Jedi robes, she still hadn't answered the question. Finally, while she was strapping her gear to her body, the bounty hunter answered.

"It was at the end of the Clone Wars." Ezra perked up at her somber voice. "My Master and I had just returned to the Jedi Temple. But my master was wary. Master Windu and several others had gone to investigate something at the Chancellor's office, so he and a couple of members from the White Eagle squadron went to investigate. However, without warning, the clone soldiers opened fire on me and my master. I…. I had to kill three of them. But more were coming. My master stayed behind, while I sounded the alarm. But it wasn't enough."

Ezra blinked. "So, you were in the thick of it when it all happened."

She nodded, her eyes closed. "After I escaped, I swore off everything I learned and knew and donned a new name. But even though I was a bounty hunter, I stayed true to my beliefs that all life is sacred. Though, with the bounty on my head, that was a little difficult."

The young boy smiled slightly. He sat there, watching as White Eagle continue to put pieces of armor on. When she was finished, it was almost lunch. White Eagle looked like a Jedi pulled out of the Clone Wars, with dark earthen brown robes, black leggings, fingerless gloves and brown boots. On her wrists, she had black wrist protectors. Her hair was pulled up in a bun, a few strands falling over her face. With her lightsaber attached to her hip, she looked like everything he was training to be. A Jedi, strong, powerful and noble.

"Come on, Ezra." White Eagle ordered. "Time to deal with a snake."

Right as the two Jedi stepped outside, a crowd started to gather. Sully was smirking as he entered the circle that the prisoners unwittingly made. Hogan and his men stood near their barracks, watching the scene carefully. His orders rang through Ezra's head. White Eagle had to make it look like she wasn't the one who started the fight. And by the way she was examining the crowd and her opponent, the Lothal native assumed she was doing a pretty good job. Her opponent seemed to get the wrong idea.

"What's wrong? Loosing your nerve?"

White Eagle chuckled to herself quietly. "Not at all. I was just wondering if you were really so cowardly as to attack a weak woman."

Sully punched his fist into his open palm, chuckling to himself maliciously. Ezra found Kanan and Rex and stood by them, each watching with varying degrees of amusement. Rex felt like he had seen this somewhere before. Either between the new recruits or between General Skywalker and some Separatist enemy. Whatever it was, the former Clone captain watched closely. This woman…. she was very interesting in her techniques.

"Time to teach you a lesson." Sully cried before he launched himself into the attack. He rushed White Eagle, who just stood there. Right as the man was about to land a punch, White Eagle moved. She moved so fast that Ezra forced himself not to blink, as he was afraid he would miss something. With such grace and speed, White Eagle avoided the sloppy punches of the large man. This went on for several minutes, and everyone clearly saw Sully slowing down and tiring. But White Eagle didn't appear to have broken a sweat.

"Wow." White Eagle exclaimed sarcastically. She examined her nails with much more interest. "And here I thought you were such a big man. Guess I was wrong."

Sully apparently wasn't as tired as he seemed to be as he growled, launching himself at the brunette woman for one final hit. White Eagle was ready. In one swift movement, White Eagle grabbed the man by his wrists, twisted her body around, and, as if he weighed nothing more than Ezra himself, effortlessly pulled the large man over her shoulder. Sully McCarter landed on the ground with a loud 'omph', the wind and fight thoroughly knocked out of him. The bounty hunter leaned over the man, her foot firmly on his chest.

"Next time, I would think carefully before you challenge me." She warned softly. The brunette made to move but stopped. Bending back over the shell-shocked man, she said, "Oh, I hope you learned your lesson."

The men erupted into applause as White Eagle strolled through the crowd to where Hogan and his men were waiting. However, she didn't get very far as she and Sully were rounded up by Schultz and taken to the Kommadant's office. Hogan, though, was quick to be the cavalry as he strode quickly behind the large guard, disappearing moments after the three.

"Hogan says to be ready after roll call," the man named Kinchloe informed Kanan softly before returning to mingling with the other prisoners. Kanan wordlessly nodded before leaning against the barracks, deep in thought. Ezra walked up beside his master, doing the same as him.

"What if we don't get Serth's daughter out?" Ezra asked silently. He didn't realize he was thinking out loud until his master spoke.

"Don't worry." He assured his apprentice. "We will."

-Line break-

Bonga sighed as he paced the length of the loading deck anxiously. He hadn't had any word from Kanan, Ezra or Rex. Almost another full week had passed, and it was really starting to grate on the Mon Calamari's nerve. 'What ifs' started to circulate through his mind, each worse than the last.

 _What if they didn't reach White Eagle?_

 _What if they were shot by the very people they were trying to get captured by?_

 _What if they got in touch with the Fleet and they figured out that he was the traitor?_

 _What if they were planning to jump him, the minute he steps out of the ship?_

The Mon Calamari sighed as he continued to pace. He wrung his webbed hands nervously, trying to dispatch the thoughts. Suddenly, he stopped. Bonga turned, making his way towards the magazine, where the weapons were stored. Kanan and Rex had managed to bring a good number of weapons with them, though Kanan only took his lightsaber, and Rex his twin blaster pistols.

Bonga smiled as he pulled a large blaster off the rack, weighing it. He checked it, his smile growing when he saw that it was fully loaded.

Time to prepare for the attack….


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Klink wasn't really happy about the fight happening in the middle of his compound. Solstice and Sully stood in front of him. The man next to her had his head bowed in submission, but Solstice stared at the willowy man before her. If she played her cards right, then she could convince Klink that the man beside her started the fight and she was just defending herself.

 _Now if only Hogan would come,_ she thought as Klink continued his rant.

"Disgraceful conduct!" He shouted. Solstice blinked as he waved his riding crop in the air. "I thought that prisoners of war would hold themselves into a higher standard of behaving that having fights in the courtyard!"

"But Kommadant Klink-" Sully started.

"SILENCE!" The Kommadant interrupted. Solstice winced as a bunch of spit found itself on her face. She wiped it off and waited for Klink to stop yelling. "You two will be confined to sixty days in the cooler."

That's when Hogan decided to make his appearance. "Kommadant, I protest to the punishment!"

Klink flinched, as the Colonel came in suddenly, before he managed to regain his composer a little bit. But the angry expression soon returned as did his rant. "HOGAN GET OUT OF HERE!"

"But Kommadant, I can tell you that you're wrongly punishing Solstice! She didn't start this!"

"Oh really?" Klink's face scrunched up as if he smelled something disgusting. "And what happened?"  
"I was minding my own business," Solstice stated before Hogan could formulate a reply. "Then, this barbarian attacked me. And if you ask anyone in the compound, they'll tell you that I didn't start it. I only finished it."

Klink scowled as he examined the two prisoners in front of him. His eyes lingered on Solstice for a moment longer before flicking over to Sully. "Very well. Sully McCarter, you will spend thirty days in the cooler. Solstice, you and Hogan are free to go."

The brunette smirked as she and Hogan made their way out of the office as quickly as they could. It was slowly approaching roll call, which meant in a mere couple of hours, the mission would begin. As the two made their way towards the barracks, they spotted Doctor Serth speaking with General Burkhalter. The large general sneered at them as they made their way to their place among the prisoners. Doctor Serth gave Solstice a barely noticeable smile before bidding the Gestapo General a goodnight, turning towards his private barracks.

As the General entered his automobile, Solstice suddenly thought of something. "How are we going to get to the plant?"

"Kanan told me you could convince one of the guards to let you borrow one of the automobiles." Hogan whispered back. Solstice nodded back. Her eyes went over to where three automobiles were parked, each heavily guarded by guards.

"We may have to ambush one outside of camp." She informed the Colonel. "If we take one here, we may be in trouble."

"Okay. Meet in the tunnel as soon as possible."

Solstice nodded as she walked over to where she was supposed to stand for roll call. There was nothing tenser than minutes before a high-risk mission took place. Fifteen years ago, when she was still a Padawan, Solstice would meditate in her quarters to calm and focus her mind on the coming mission. She would also prepare herself for the casualties that would no doubt happen during the battle. But now, standing in at attention while she went over all the possibilities that could or could not happen during this rescue mission. It didn't help calm her mind. In fact, it did the opposite. She felt herself start too worry.

A little girl's life was at stake. An alliance with the greatest mind in the galaxy was at stake. Everything the Rebellion had worked for up to this moment was at stake. There were just too many variables to take in account. As roll call continued, Solstice felt her panic reach its peak. That is, until a calming presence wrapped around her.

 _Be still, my young apprentice._ Her brow furrowed as she could've sworn she heard her Master whisper in her ear. _Focusing on what might not happen is not the way to think. You must concentrate all your energies to getting yourself and your friends to safety._

"DIIIIIIISSSSSSMMMMMIIIIIIIISSSSSEEEEEDDDDDDD!" Solstice snapped herself out of her trance at Klink's orders. She quickly disappeared into her barracks, her heart pounding hard against her ribcage. Even though time was of the essence, the bounty hunter hesitated at the drop down.

 _Master, please watch over us._ She prayed.

 _I am always with you, Solstice._

This time, there was no doubt that she heard him speak to her. She didn't know how that was possible but it helped calm her heart and focus her mind. A small smile was on her face as she switched off the lights using the Force before leaping down in the dark tunnel, closing the hatch as she fell. As quickly as she could, Solstice made her way to her ship, grabbing the explosive paint. She grabbed several different colors (red, black, purple, blue, white and orange) before making her way to where she was meeting the rest of the attack team.

When she arrived, Kanan, Newkirk and Carter were all dressed up in their disguises. Kanan and Newkirk wore the uniforms of sergeants, while Carter wore a uniform of a Corporal. When Hogan saw her, he handed her the uniform of a general.

"Do you really think that the Germans will believe a woman is a Gestapo General?" Solstice asked as she pulled the uniform over her stealth robes.

"Well, if you're convincin' enough they might." Newkirk stated as he sucked on a cigarette. "An' believe me, you are well convincin', my dear."

Solstice placed a hand over her heart in mock sincerity. "Aw, thank you! That means the world to me!"

"Hey, do you have the exploding paint?" Carter asked. His eyes were lit up like a Wookie cub on Life Day. Solstice laid the canisters on the table for them to look over.

"Choose your colors boys." She ordered lightly. While they did that, Hogan handed her a primitive blaster. She gave it a look over, spinning the barrel before giving it a flip and sliding it into the visible holster. The bounty hunter made sure her lightsaber and her blaster were hidden before tying her hair back. She turned around and saw Carter holding three of the canisters. The colored stripes on it were red, white and blue. The blond man rolled the canisters towards her, which she then examined with a cocked eyebrow.

"Any specific reason for these colors?" Solstice asked as she pulled out a bag and stuffed the canisters into it.

"Gonna give the Germans a taste of the ol' red, white and blue." Hogan answered.

"I don't know about this, Eagle." Kanan muttered as he clumsily adjusted his uniform coat. Solstice sighed as she walked over and helped him straighten his coat.

"Just remember, you're a sergeant. You do as I tell you to. Don't talk either, because I'm not sure if you have the German accent down."

"Again, I still don't know about this." The brunet man repeated. Solstice felt his anxiety through the Force, as it was overwhelming. So, she sent a wave of calm through the Force. It apparently worked as the man's panic ebbed away and he took a deep breath.

"Don't worry." She assured him before turning to the others. "We'll be fine if we just follow the plan."

"Alrigh', let's get goin'." Newkirk said as he, Carter and Kanan strolled towards the end of the tunnel. Solstice hesitated before turning to Hogan. Worry shone clear in the Colonel's eyes. The brunette Jedi met the man's eyes, her aquamarine eyes glinting.

"I will bring them home, Hogan." She promised. "Even if I have to sacrifice myself, then I will. You will get your men back."

All Hogan said was, "Be sure that they do."

Solstice watched as he disappeared down the opposite side of the tunnel. She took a deep breath before she quickly followed the men. They waited several miles outside of camp before ambushing a transport truck, ironically heading in the direction they were going in. Solstice and Kanan wiped their memories with the Force, so that when they woke up or found, then they wouldn't be able to rat them out. As Solstice took her place in the passenger seat, while Carter drove, she once again prayed for her master to watch over them on the mission and prayed to whatever deity she could think of to help them.

When the factory came into view, Solstice drew herself up. She wrapped herself in an air of command and authority. Kanan's panic and anxiety came back ten-fold when they were waved down by the guards.

"Papers?" He asked. Thankfully, Solstice had a mind to snatch the papers from the people that they ambushed. Carter handed them to the guard, who looked them over before waving them through. The bounty hunter sighed heavily through her nose as she kept her eyes forward and kept her face neutral. Carter drove through the compound, parking right outside the factory. Everyone piled out of the truck, Kanan and Newkirk bringing up the rear as Carter helped Solstice out.

The supposed person in charge came up to them, giving a typical German salute. The group saluted back, the tense moment getting even tenser.

"Forgive us, but we weren't expecting you, General Kaller." The man stated, directing it at Carter. Solstice cleared her throat.

"Haven't you heard of a surprise inspection, Colonel?" she asked. It was at that moment that Solstice saw the blood drain from the man's face when his steely eyes flickered over to her and examined her garb. He tried to stutter an apology but was cut off when Solstice held up her hand. "Save your weak apologizes for someone who cares. I have very little time to do this, so let's get on with it."

"Of course." He gestured for them to follow into the factory. "Is there anything specific you wish to see?"

"Yes." Solstice clipped. "I heard that Doctor Kandar Serth's daughter is here. I was sent here to ask her some questions about her father's loyalty to the Fuhrer."

"Ah." The man wasn't at all surprised at Solstice's demands. But she pushed all her anger down as far as she could as she pulled up the stony, emotionless personality that made her White Eagle. "If I may ask, how does a beautiful woman like you become a Gestapo General?"

"Knowing the right people." Solstice stated with an air of aloofness. "And being extraordinary. The Fuhrer wanted to use me to throw men off balance. I have to say, he is a clever man."

"He is indeed." The Colonel agreed, though Solstice could feel through the Force that this man didn't exactly believe that. The group continued to walk through the factory, the colonel taking all the twists and turns he could probably think of. Solstice felt a bit of déjà vu, her mind going to the time she rescued the little Twi'lek at the beginning of this adventure. Much like what was left of the Zygerian slave guild, this man was purposefully leading her and her group through a maze to through them off in case they turned out be enemies. But, like the Zygerian Slave Guild, all it did was help the bounty hunter get a better layout of the place.

After what seemed like an eternity, the group arrived at a small room. Two guards were posted outside, each looking very intimidating.

"May I ask why you have two soldiers guarding a simple child?" Solstice asked.

"Because the child is a crafty little devil." The Colonel admitted. "She has already tried to escape three times. Each time, she has gotten closer and closer to success. If it wasn't for the strict orders that no harm came to her, she would've been shot already."

Solstice pretended to look surprise, but in her mind, the bounty hunter was feeling admiration for the little child. Only nine years old, and she was able to almost escape three times. Those orders were the only thing that was keeping her alive in this place.

The bounty hunter blinked, the sound of the German Colonel unlocking the door pulling her out of her thoughts. Inside, the room was nothing more than a bed pushed up against the wall, a desk and a chair. But, littering the ground and the surface of the desk, were bright pictures, most of which depicted a happy family. In the far corner of the room, sat a little girl. She looked like her father, with the same black hair, same black eyes and same facial structure. The little girl wore a frilly pink dress that was covered in dirt. Her scared eyes burrowed into Solstice's soul.

 _Focus,_ she ordered herself. Turning to the prisoners of war in disguise, she ordered, "Stand by the door. Colonel, you are dismissed."

"Heil Hitler!" He saluted. Solstice gave a half-hearted salute back before the man left. Once the door was shut, Kanan all but collapsed, sweat glittering on his forehead clearly. Newkirk and Carter seemed very collected as they examined the room.

Suddenly, the little girl spoke up. "You're not with the Germans, are you?"

Solstice, her heart melting, knelt down and placed a gentle hand on the girl's knee. "No, sweetie. We're not."

She cocked her head. "Are you with the Empire?"

"No, Tammara. We're with the Rebellion."

"How do you know my name?" The little girl asked. Solstice saw that the girl goes on the defensive.

"Don't worry. We've come to save you. Your dad sent us."

"Is he okay?"

"He's fine." Kanan answered. His aquamarine eyes glittered as he examined the walls. "We need to get going if this plan is going to succeed."

Solstice nodded as she stood, the little girl standing as well. The bounty hunter turned to the other three. "Okay. Let's go."

The bounty hunter clutched the girl's hand as she exited the room. To her surprise, the guards were gone, allowing them to easily move through the compound, though they were as stealthy as they could. While going through the plant, they came to where all the factory workers were. Solstice spotted a boiler that could create quite the pretty explosion. She jerked her head silently to the others, who all nodded in agreement. As she was struggling to come up with a plan, a whistle blew, signifying a break. The five of them ducked into a spare room and waited until all the workers to leave before sneaking inside.

"Whoa." Solstice heard Carter mutter as he picked up a blaster. It was very poorly cobbled together, but it was a blaster.

"We definitely need to destroy this place." Newkirk declared as he examined the stockpile.

"These…. they're not very well made." Solstice noticed as she ran her hand over it. With the Force, the bounty hunter could see the entire inner workings of the weapon. None of the wiring were wired correctly, but there were a few things that were correct. Kanan glanced over at her, when he felt the Force being used. "But…. there's enough correct that they can use it effectively."

"So, this is the room that needs to go." Kanan theorized as he pulled out the few charges given. "I'll start putting these bad boys down."

"Carter and Newkirk, how about you guys get started on your art project?" Solstice suggested, while tossing the three cans over to them. Carter caught two while Newkirk caught one and together, the two started to get to work on the painting. Solstice glanced around, piling all the blasters she could together in a pile. Tammara watched all of this quietly. Her black eyes darted around, zeroing on Solstice the longest.

"Everyone good?" Solstice asked as she finished piling the blasters together.

"Finished." Kanan announced.

"All good here!" Newkirk informed as he tossed the paint back to him. Solstice examined the artwork. It was a flag, red and white stripes, blue border, and white stars. It was pretty artfully done. It could've passed for Sabine's artwork. The bounty hunter quickly pulled out a spare can, a bright orange color that Sabine usually used. With quick strokes, Solstice painted the Starbird of the Jedi and Rebellion next to the flag. She examined the portrait before turning to Kanan, who had a knowing smile on his face. Solstice just shrugged as she grabbed Tammara and the group dashed out of the room. They made it all the way to the automobile before they were stopped.

"Where are you going with the prisoner?" The colonel from before asked.

"We were never here." Kanan stated with authority. He waved a hand over the man's face. The group watched as the colonel go glassy-eyed.

"You were never here." He repeated in a monotone voice.

"You will forget that you saw us."

"I will forget that I saw you."

"Now, go back to your post."

The colonel suddenly turned on his heels and walked off into the compound. Newkirk and Carter breathed a sigh of relief as they all piled into the car. Solstice took the driver's seat and they rode in relative silence before stopping halfway between the camp and the compound.

"Why are we stoppin'?" Newkirk demanded. He glanced at his watch. "We only go' a half hour before roll call."

"And we're twenty miles from camp!" Carter added.

"Well excuse me for having a little fun." Solstice shot back. "I thought you guys wanted to see the destruction of the compound."

"But it's so far!" Carter pointed out.

"Oh, trust me. With all of the explosives and the amount of paint we used, you'll be able to see it from here." Solstice took a few minutes to make sure the devices were synced up with her wrist control. Everyone waited with baited breath as her finger slowly drifted towards the button. "Be prepared, in three, two, ONE!"

Her finger pressed down on the button. There was a moment of silence, which had Solstice thinking something went wrong, before an explosion rocked the night. It was so bright, it almost seemed like the sun was rising. But instead of a warm ball of fire, only a giant mushroom cloud explosion rose off the horizon. The five of them braced for the shockwave that nearly pushed them back and toppled the truck. The explosion was so beautiful, the destruction so complete it drew a tear from Solstice's eye. Glancing over she saw that Carter had his hand over his heart as the smoke took on a red, white and blue color. As the three colors faded, the smoke turned briefly orange and took the shape of a Phoenix rising from the smoke.

"Alright, let's get hopping." Solstice ordered as she and the others reentered the truck. Newkirk drove this time, as he knew all the ends and outs of the backroads that went straight to camp. But that didn't mean he would go slow. The RAF pilot put petal to the metal, barreling through the trees and bushes. Solstice was with Carter and Kanan in the back, and all three of them had to hold onto something for dear life. The bounty hunter's stomach wasn't happy with all the bumps, sharp turns and jerky stops but she managed to not throw up in the back of the truck. Kanan wasn't doing much better than her but Carter seemed to have a relaxed smile on his face. He was even humming a tune that Solstice recognized as the 'Battle Hymn of the Republic' from the music nights at Stalag 13.

After another thirty minutes, the truck came to a complete stop. The three in the back hopped out of the truck quickly, tossing their weapons and over coats into the back. Sweat had coated the inside of her uniform, which was unfortunate as a cold breeze blew by, inciting a wince and a groan. With much difficulty, the bounty hunter tossed the heavy overcoat over her shoulder. Looking around, Solstice noticed they were only three miles from camp, two and a half from the hidden tunnel. She glanced at her chronometer and noted that they only had fifteen minutes before roll call.

"Come here, Tammara." Solstice ordered. Unceremoniously, she picked the young girl up and draped her over her shoulder. When the others sent her strange looks, the bounty hunter pointed out, "It's quicker! Come on, you three! Move like a Loth Wolf is after you!"

That seemed to spur the men forward. Solstice and Kanan poured on the speed with the Force. Some deity was looking out for them. That or their luck was still running well.

They managed to make it back to the camp with minutes to spare. Solstice quickly ordered Tammara to stay in the tunnels before dashing back up to her quarters. She just managed to slide underneath her covers and slightly level out her breathing before the guard burst in, ordering that she get up for roll call. The bounty hunter was extremely exhausted, the adrenaline from the mission fading. Though there weren't any close calls in this one (not counting the timeliness), Solstice felt that one wrong move on her part, and the whole thing would've collapsed.

 _Let's get through today,_ she chanted to herself. _After roll call, you can take a nap. Just get through a couple of hours of that. You can do it._

Unlike all the other times, Solstice allowed her composure to match that of the others: slumped. Several times during roll call, she found herself dozing on her feet, something she mastered when she was still a Padawan. She only managed to wake up when Klink finished his spiel. Apparently, the news about the destruction of the factory swept through the German ranks pretty quickly, considering it was only mere minutes after the fact. It was probably because the explosion was so bright and so noticeable. Hogan gave her a quirked eyebrow when the Kommadant said something about a red, white and blue tinted smoke. She shrugged subtly at the Colonel, before returning her attention to the Kommadant.

"And I assure you, these men responsible for this will be found and held responsible! DISSSIMMMISSED!" Klink turned sharply on his heels, heading back towards his barracks. Solstice hung her head for a moment before straightening and making her way towards Barracks Two. Only, she took a couple of steps before Ezra slammed her with a hug.

"That was AWESOME!" the boy declared.

"You saw the explosion?" Solstice asked.

"Saw it?" The blue-haired boy chuckled. "I saw it, heard it. Heck, I FELT it. The shockwave nearly blew Barracks Two down."

"Well, that's what happens when you use a massive amount of explosive paint and explosives." Solstice ruffled his hair. She sighed as she made her way towards Hogan's barracks. The brown-haired Colonel was already waiting for her already, leaning up against the barracks. He straightened up when he noticed the bounty hunter and young rebel walking towards him. He patted the woman on the back.

"Congratulations, Solstice!" He said.

"Thanks." Solstice coughed.

"I need you to come with for a moment. Ezra, you too."

Solstice cocked an eyebrow. "What for?" She noticed that the boy beside her was trying to hide a smile. "What's going on?"

"Just close your eyes." Ezra ordered. The two males had taken up position at either side of the door, blocking her from entering. Solstice glanced at the two before sighing. She complied, her eyes closing shut. Almost immediately, the brunette woman heard the boy snicker. "Don't peek."

Hogan (or she assumed it was Hogan) gently grabbed her wrist and directed her forward. Solstice tried to make out what was going on in Barracks Two. Except, she couldn't. It was very quiet. There was some shuffling and Solstice heard something that sounded like snickering.

"What's going on?" She repeated.

"Just keep your eyes closed, Sol." Carter's voice could be heard to her left. "You can open in three, two, one!"

She popped her eyes open quickly. For some reason, the former bounty hunter was expecting an attack, or something along those lines. Not the entirety of Barracks Two covered with makeshift streamers and confetti. A sign was strung between the two rows of barracks, and on the table, there was a pretty big cake with 'twenty-six' written on it in pink icing. There were a couple of candles that were lit. Solstice felt her heart melt at the effort as the men started to sing 'Happy Birthday'. The men were out of tune and very off-beat, but it was the thought that counted. Besides, it's been a while since she spent her birthday with living beings. Usually, she spent her birthdays in the bar with several glasses of Corellian Whiskey.

"Guys!" she explained as Kinchloe placed a makeshift party hat on her head. She wiped a tear that seemed to fall. "You guys didn't have to do this."

"We know." Ezra answered as he scooped up a small bit of icing with his finger, despite the fact that Lebeau was trying to smack him away.

"Rex told us that your birthday was today and, well, we just wanted to show you some gratification for helping us with the mission." Hogan stated. Suddenly, Solstice felt turned off by the cake, her stomach doing an uneasy roll. She figured it was the guilt, considering that she had been rude to the former Captain of the 501st. Her face for a moment, but before anyone could notice, she wiped it off her face and smiled brightly.

"Uh, I'm gonna go and put on something a little less smelly. I'll be right back." The brunette lied. There was no hesitating when she exited the barracks. When the door closed behind her, Solstice scanned the compound for Rex, who was sitting on a crate, whittling a piece of wood. There was a slight hesitance in her actions but Solstice managed to move her feet forward until she was in front of the old soldier.

"Hey." She greeted quiet. Rex glanced up, his hard-amber eyes softening at the sight of her. "I, uh, just wanted to thank you for organizing the party."

Rex smiled softly. "No problem."

"And, I'm sorry for how I treated you these past few days." Tears were forming in her eyes. "I guess I wasn't as over the massacre as I thought I was."

The old clone placed his things down, before standing up and embracing her in a hug. Solstice was shocked at first and tensed…. but eventually melted into the hug. When they broke a part, Solstice felt that she finally made reconciliation with her past.

"Now come on, let's go and eat that cake."

"Yeah, before Ezra eats up all of it."

The two of them chuckled as they made their way towards Barracks Two.

-Line Break-

Sabine Wren sighed as she examined the case file put together on Bonga Liferift. This guy was such a good agent for the Empire, even if the Mandelorian hated to admit it. As it would have it, Bonga had been seen in several dozen systems over the course of the few years that the Empire had been in power. He had several different aliases that he used over the course of the years, and different jobs he's used to get close to those involved with the rebellion. Sabine remembered a time when she and the Crew found out that Gall Trayvis was also a traitor to the Rebellion, using the façade of a senator in exile to lure rebels and insurgents into a trap.

Bonga Liferift, however, was a whole other story. He actually brutally killed those insurgents and rebels that were unfortunate enough to encounter the Mon Calamari. Sabine winced at the pictures of those who were found dead. Most of the bodies found were unidentifiable. The cops couldn't even identify what species the person was. And three of her teammates and an ally (if you use the term loosely) of the Rebellion were trapped on a planet with no way to contact the Ghost crew if they needed help.

Hera was driving herself up the wall with worry, but Sabine had managed to keep her from flying off on a half-baked plan. The high-brass also did the same, giving them mission after mission in order to keep them from flying off and doing something stupid. Right now, they were shipping a bunch of Porgs to Vizago on Lothal. They were annoyingly cute but still annoying. It took the Mandelorian all that she had to not shove them into the cold void of space.

"Hey Sabine," Zeb's voice cut through her thought. "Hera wants you to help her herd the Porgs into their cages. We're coming out of hyperspace."

"Okay." Sabine placed the datapad on the desk before leaving her room. She sent a quick prayer to whatever deity would listen that Ezra, Kanan, Rex and White Eagle would get out okay.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Solstice giggled at Lebeau as he sang 'Happy Birthday' in his native language. From all the heckling the man got, and from all the other very out of tune singing, she was surprised that guards hadn't come to see if the prisoners were torturing a poor animal or something. There was still a bit of cake left. Solstice was tempted to have it, but she could barely move an inch. Most of the men were like vultures after Lebeau cut the cake. But Hogan had everyone allow her to get the first slice.

The cake was very soft and velvety and the icing practically melting in her mouth. And since the short Frenchman had to basically sell his soul to the devil to get the ingredients, Solstice was very thankful for Lebeau and his cooking skills.

"And now, a special presentation to our very own birthday girl of Stalag 13." Carter announced. Newkirk was behind him, the RAF pilot's hand behind his back. Solstice raised an eyebrow as she crossed her legs and leaned forward in the chair (which the men basically forced her to sit in during the performances). Barracks 2 became alive with celebration, almost in an over the top way. She was amazed at the lengths these men went through just to help her celebrate her birthday, even though the bounty hunter only knew these men for a couple of months. Everything was just like a party she would have when she was little. The streamers, the banner, the party hats and silly games, it was amazing.

Solstice made a mental note to thank Colonel Hogan for the party, Lebeau for the cake and the rest for all the laughs.

"Fo' you, mademoiselle." Newkirk stated with an overexaggerated mockery of Lebeau's accent. He handed her a flower, which she gently plucked from his fingers. It was fake, but she made a big deal of sniff it and being taken in by its 'aroma'. "An' now, for me next trick, pick a card, lass."

The bounty hunter bit her lip as she examined the cards offered by the 'magician'. Slowly, the woman pulled a card from the deck and examined it. Queen of Hearts. Solstice examined it with a smirk. Newkirk folded the deck back and started to shuffle.

"Now, memorize tha' card for me, love." Newkirk ordered as she did so. "And make sure to keep it hidden. Don't show anybody."

Solstice couldn't help but feel excitement bubble up in her chest. Card tricks were a simple thing to learn but it all required timing. Something told the former Jedi that this man in front of her all but mastered the card tricks. She watched as Newkirk did fancy shuffling with the cards. Ezra seemed hooked on the shuffling, as his electric blue eyes were watch closely as if he hoped to mimic it when he got back home.

 _That would be nice,_ Solstice thought with a small smile. _Maybe lift the spirits of the rebels when they had a bad defeat._

"Alright, now…for the reveal." Newkirk stated dramatically. "You still got your card?"

Solstice held it up, the back side facing him. He smiled.

"Okay, Sol. Is this your card?" Newkirk held up a Queen of Hearts card. Solstice flipped her card over, revealing the same type of card. The entire barracks erupted in cheers and laughs. Hogan tried to get everyone to calm down but it wasn't enough. A moment later, an angry looking Schultz barged into the barracks. His beady eyes took in all the merrymaking, which suddenly halted when the door burst open.

"Wat is los?" the fat guard demanded angrily. Many of the men tried to hide evidence of the party by shoving their hats and pieces of cake behind their backs. But they couldn't really hide the streamers strewn all over the bunks and floors, the banner that hung crookedly, very few uneaten pieces of cake, nor could they hide the fact that Solstice was wearing a bedsheet like a sash and it had 'birthday queen' stitched across it.

Solstice hoped that the barrack's guard wouldn't throw all of them in front of the firing line on the account of her. So, she tried to come up with an excuse. Luckily (and thankfully), Hogan swooped in before she could even open her mouth.

"Have a piece of cake Schultz!"

"Colonel Hogan, please!" the guard sputtered. It was obvious that he was trying to avoid looking at the cake.

"Oh, come on Schultz!" Hogan insisted. He circled the leftover pieces underneath the guard's nose. Solstice, and every other prisoner, watched as Schultz's resolve crumbled. Finally, the guard picked up a large chunk of cake and started to eat it slowly, seemingly reveling in the fact that something that good could touch his lips.

"So, why the party?" He asked while munching on his pieces.

"It's Solstice's birthday." Carter answered honestly. He gestured to the still frozen brunette woman, who was blinking owlishly. This sight was still confusing.

"Oh! Happy birthday, my dear!" The man greeted. "I wish I had something to give you but I'm afraid-"

Solstice cut him off with a wave. "It's fine. Honestly. Your wishes are good enough."

"How old are you, fraulien?"

"As of today, I'm twenty-six." Solstice stated proudly. In all honesty, she wasn't expecting to make it this far. Thirty is another milestone for her. That, and living another sunrise is on her list of things to celebrate.

"I will leave you to finish the celebrations. But _please_ keep it down. I don't want to get in trouble with the Kommadant."

Solstice and Hogan both gave the guard a mischievous wink. "I wouldn't dream of it, Schultz." Solstice slyly promised. Schultz just grumbled as he made his way out of the barracks. The revelry continued as soon as the door was shut, though this time, it was much more restrained and quiet. Solstice, full of cake and tired from the games, sighed in content as she watched Ezra regale the men from Barracks Two with tales of his home and adventures. They all sat enraptured by the young boy.

Long ago, right after the massacre, Solstice had a hope that when the Empire was destroyed and the Jedi rebuilt, she would be able to pass her wisdom onto the new generation of Jedi. But that part of her life was over, that part of her naivety destroyed. Solstice was content with being a bounty hunter until she died. Was she going to help fight in the Rebellion, to help restore the Republic?

Maybe she was destined to be here, on Earth with Hogan and his men. The Force was always trying to speak to her, but only recently had she started to listen again. Now she was at a crossroads, something she always hated. She could say goodbye to Hogan's men and leave with Kanan, Ezra and Rex to continue the fight from fifteen years ago, and finally end it. But she would have her abilities out in the open and would be constantly targeted by the Empire. But she could also stay with here. Together, Hogan's crew and her could so much damage to the German army. Besides, she was curious about this little world. Enough so that the young woman could spend the rest of her lifetime researching this place.

Kanan leaned up against the table, eyeing his Padawan with a smirk. "He's got them raptured."

"I'll say. How much of these stories are true?"

"Not one bit." Kanan answered.

"And so there we were, our backs against the wall, fire all around us." Ezra said in a dramatic tone. "We were low on ammo, and we were outnumbered a thousand to one. So, what did I do? I used the Force and brought down an entire Imperial Star Destroyer right from orbit on top of the entire platoon."  
The guys chuckled at the kid's tale, obviously not believing in the tale.

"Okay, everyone! Presents time!" Hogan announced. Solstice decided that it was time to draw the line there.

"Nope, nope! I won't except any presents from you. That's just too much!" The brunette bounty hunter blinked. "Where did you even get presents from anyway?"

"They're our Red Cross packages." Carter answered.

Solstice sighed. "I can't take that from you! You guys have waited too long for those."

"But we all chipped in." Hogan said. "Even Helga gave you something."

The bounty hunter bit her lip, hesitating. These men gave up their rations from the Red Cross to give her a real birthday. Finally, she gave up and allowed them to hand their presents forward. Solstice slowly opened them one by one. Most of the gifts were small chocolate bars, but there were a few other knickknacks. A couple of small books, a deck of playing cards and what she assumed was pack of death sticks, which she gave back to Newkirk. Helga gave her a flower hair clip. Solstice happily placed it in her hair, a small smile on her face. She sent a wink over at Carter, who blushed furiously.

After that, the party started to wind down. The prisoners started to clean up the mess made and that included the streamers. Solstice helped take down the banner. They decided it would be best used in case they became low on firewood. It was around night rollcall when they finally finished cleaning the barracks. The brunette sighed as they all walked out just in time for the guards to order roll call. The men all lined up in their respective lines. Most of the men returned to their seriousness, as did Solstice. Her eyes drifted to Doctor Serth, who was standing on the porch of the guest barracks. She nodded to the good doctor when he caught her eye. A small smile appeared on his face, his eyes lighting up happily.

Roll call was pretty standard. Solstice was tired, ready to sleep. But she had one more part of the mission to complete. After roll call was finished, she ordered Kanan to get in contact with Bonga, and the three of them prepare to leave. They would make a break for the _Twilight_ an hour after lights out. It would give Solstice some time to think of a plan to get Doctor Serth out of the hands of the Germans. A plan came to mind, something that would put the entire Stalag at risk, but if it cleared with Colonel Hogan, then it just might work.

Solstice spent the hour meditating. She centered herself, calmed her heart rate, and quieted her mind. Deep, slow breathes filled the barracks. The Force responded in kind. It swirled around her, pushing and pulling like an ocean. And she was the island. Together, the Force and Solstice were symbiotic. She fed her energy into the Force, while it gave her power. They were one and the same. A knock at the trapdoor pulled the woman out of her meditative state. She opened the door, smiling when Carter's face met her.

"Hey." He greeted. Solstice helped him up, and when she managed to pull him up onto his feet, she gave him a quick peck on the lips. There was a blush that formed on her face as she turned around quickly. She picked up her lightsaber while Carter fumbled over his words.

"So…so, what's the p-plan?"

"We're going to set fire to the guest barracks with Doctor Serth in it." Solstice explained while she hooked her blaster and lightsaber to her belt. She giggled at the sight of Carter's shocked face. "What?"

"Did you hear yourself just now?" Carter asked again.

"Yeah." Solstice blinked. "What about it?"

"Come on." He grabbed her hand and drug her to the underground meeting room. Hogan, his men, Kanan, Ezra, Rex and Bellatrix Serth were all waiting there. Kinchloe and Newkirk were keeping Bellatrix laughing with tricks and funny voices. She seemed to especially loved the ones making fun of the German leader, Hitler, if Solstice remembered correctly. "I think Solstice has finally lost it."

"Why?" Hogan asked. Solstice rolled her eyes.

"All I did was suggest a plan." She defended.

"And what's your plan, exactly?" Kanan asked.

"We burn down the guest barracks, make it look like it was an accident caused by faulty wiring, or maybe a lit cigarette." Solstice explained. It was a little more detailed than what she told Carter, but it seemed to get Hogan thinking. "Do you still have those frozen chickens, Lebeau?"

"Oui. But why would you need those?"

"Those will be Doctor Serth." She explained. "We put those chickens in a Gestapo uniform, douse the barracks in some kind of starter, and light the puppy up. When the Germans finally put the fire out, they'll find that Doctor Kandar Serth accidentally set himself on fire."

Hogan and his men were quiet, as they probably were weighing out the pros and cons of the plan. Bellatrix, all too unaware of the situation involving her father, laughed as she placed herself on the floor to bounce a ball. She was enraptured with the ball. Solstice followed the young girl with her eyes, a small smile on her face. Oh, how she wanted to have kids! While it was a part of the Jedi Code to not form attachments, Solstice found herself wanting to have a family even when she was a young child. When the Order fell, and she became a bounty hunter, that dream became more and more of a fantasy. Being on the run, trying to fill her stomach, living day to day….it wasn't a life she wanted to give a child. But now, with peace for her being so close…

Solstice glanced over at Carter, who was still talking with Hogan and the others. Bellatrix was tugging on his pants leg, so he knelt down and picked up the young girl up, which incited a squeal and a giggle. A small smile appeared on her face. He would make a fine father. Someday.

"-ounds like a good plan, Sol." The bounty hunter barely caught the end of Hogan's sentence, but she managed to bow her head in acknowledgment. She turned her aquamarine eyes towards Kanan.

"Have you gotten in touch with Bonga?" She asked.

"He's not answering his com." Rex answered instead. The old Clone rubbed his forehead. "It's strange."

"How so?" Kinchloe asked.

"We ordered him to stay hidden but also to keep his com on. There was radio silence but we gave him specific orders to answer if we try to contact him."

Ezra was the next one to speak. "You don't think the Nazis found him, do you?"

Solstice closed her eyes and concentrated. She blocked herself off from the other signatures on the room and expanded the parameters, so to speak. Remembering exactly what Bonga's presence felt like, Solstice bypassed every other living thing and honed in on the Mon Calamari. The bounty hunter found him almost immediately.

"No." she whispered, gaining the attention of the others. "He's still there. From what I can tell, he's safe and in no imminent danger. Maybe the signal got scrambled or something."

"Then let's not wait to put the plan into motion." Hogan ordered. "Kinch, you and Newkirk will stay here and cover us in case Klink decides to pull a surprise rollcall. Carter, you and I will go with Solstice, Kanan, Ezra and Rex."

"How do explain three missing prisoners?" Solstice asked. She blinked suddenly, then gained an evil looking smile on her face.

"What's that face for?" Kanan questioned hesitantly.

"I have another idea."

A moment later, Ezra, Kanan and Solstice were in the Kommadant's office. Hogan was there too, searching for the files on the three of the Rebels to be destroyed. When Hogan finally found their files and had stuffed them in his jacket, Klink walked in. But the three Jedi didn't freeze. Instead, Hogan slammed the door behind Klink.

"Wh-what is this insolence?" Klink demanded.

"You will forget about Ezra, Kanan and Rex." Solstice said, waving a hand in front of the old man. She channeled the Force as much as she dared.

"What are you talking about?"

"You will forget about Ezra, Kanan and Rex." Ezra chanted. He waved his hand in front of the old man, who was still confused about what was going on. But after Ezra, Klink's mind started to crumble. It was all up to Kanan.

"You will forget about Ezra, Kanan and Rex." Kanan ordered, with much more force than Solstice thought necessary. Solstice and Ezra poured on the power as did Kanan. There was very little resolve left in Klink, and that last finally crumbled. The Kommadant of Stalag 13 finally relaxed.

"I will forget about Ezra, Kanan and Rex." He repeated in a monotone voice. The three Jedi let up a little but Solstice kept her Force flow going.

"You will forget about this when we leave."

"I will forget about this when you leave."

"Now, sleep." Solstice ordered. Klink went limp, but Hogan caught him and gently put him in his chair. Hogan glanced at the three of them with wary.

"Glad you're on our side." He muttered.

"Me too," Solstice mumbled. The four of them left Klink's barracks and made their way back to the underground tunnel. They finished the final details of the plan before the leaving team slowly made their way through the vast networks of tunnels towards the guest barracks. Solstice noticed that, compared to the other tunnels, these looked older, at least by several years. She would have to ask about it later. Hogan tapped on the trapdoor that led up top. The away team waited a couple of minutes before it opened. They were blinded for a second but when they managed to clear away the spots, they saw Kandar Serth standing over them, a relieved expression on his face. Before he could open his mouth to say anything, Solstice was giving him orders.

"No time to talk," She said, hauling herself into the room. She shoved the frozen chickens into the very confused looking scientist. "Stuff these into your pants, shirt and jacket. Make it look like it was sleeping on the chair by the furnace. Also, make sure there's a bottle of whiskey and a pack of cigarettes. We want to make this as convincing as possible."

"Seems like you've done this before." Carter commented.

Solstice shrugged. "Most of the time, my targets just wanted to get out and fly under the radar. And the best way to disappear is to make people think you're dead, because come on. Who's going to be searching for a dead person?"

Carter and Hogan glanced at each other with a shrug before they started to pour a starter all over the barracks. Ezra, Kanan and Rex helped the soon-to-be former Nazis scientist get his few things together. Solstice prepared the decoy. When her task was finished, she pulled out the sheets of paper Carter and her managed to grab on their first mission together. The bounty hunter glanced down at the sheets of designs and plans.

Weapons of massive destruction, machines that could turn the tide to any and all wars…. they had to be destroyed. No doubt the Imperials and the Nazis would just turn to or force another scientist to do their bidding, but for now, they were safe. Solstice stuffed the plans into the furnace, right where the epicenter of the fire would be. Once that was finished, she turned to the rest of them. Everyone was finishing up their assignments, with Hogan and Carter pushing the man into the hole where his daughter waited.

Once everyone was down into the tunnel, Solstice lit a match, donated by Newkirk. Her eyes gave one last look at the guest barracks before she tossed it onto the chair where the chicken decoy sat. Instantly, the place was set ablaze, and the fire spread quickly. She shut the tunnel entrance quickly before she followed the rest of the group out. They went by feel of the Force and the memory of the three Rebels. It took them a little bit longer than expected but eventually they made it to where the _Twilight_ was parked. Solstice examined the surrounding area closely, her eyes scanning for anything that could suggest that a trap was waiting for them. She found nothing.

However, there was something troubling about the lack of birds. She grabbed Ezra's shoulder as he made to take a step out of the bush they were hiding behind, shaking her head when he caught her eye. Something wasn't right.

Rex nodded at her silent suggestion. The clone silently shifted on his feet, getting his blaster ready just in case before he slowly took a step out of the shadows. Kandar and his daughter were next, followed by Kanan and Ezra, then Hogan and Carter and Solstice took up the rear. The three Jedi had their weapons at the ready, as the glow and hum of the blade would have attracted attention. The group was almost to the ramp (which was suspiciously lowered) when a shadowy figure appeared.

Shoving the two civilians and the primitives behind them, Solstice tensed, ready for a fight…. only to relax when Bonga came out. She sighed in relief, as did Rex, Kanan and Ezra. Her heart was going a million miles an hour but she tried to calm it in favor of strapping her lightsaber back to her belt and straightening. The bounty hunter smirked happily as she took in the sight of her friend. He looked well enough, a bit spooked but that was to be expected, but overall in good health.

"Bonga! It's good to see you." Solstice greeted happily. She stepped forward, only to backtrack when her friend didn't put his blaster down and trained it on her. Something wasn't right….

"Stand down soldier," Rex ordered a bit tense. "It's us."

 _Never thought I'd be happy to hear a clone pull rank again,_ Solstice thought. Almost too hesitantly, the Mon Calamar placed his blaster back into the sheath before his shoulders relaxed. Solstice just couldn't though, as she felt a spike of fear in Doctor Serth. She glanced back behind her and saw the man pull his daughter closer to him, his eyes narrowing in fear. The brunette returned her eyes to the Mon Calamar in front of her. There was something going on here. It was almost as if the good doctor recognized Bonga, but that couldn't be. Kandar was someone who spent his life in the high-class of the Empire, while Bonga spent his time in the lower-middle-class. In the Empire, the two different classes didn't have any contact with each other.

"Sorry about that." Bonga apologized. "Guess I'm a little jumpy. There's been a lot of patrols recently."

"No worries…. son." Hogan assured hesitatingly. It was hilarious to look at Carter's and Hogan's faces when they saw Bonga. It was even more so hilarious as Hogan tried to ascertain the age of Bonga. "The name's Papa Bear. This is one of my cubs."

"Okay…." Bonga was as thoroughly confused as the two humans. He shook his head. "So, you found Doctor Serth. That's good, I guess."

Solstice's suspicions only grew more. The mission she was given to find Doctor Serth was surely highly confidential, and unless Bonga rose through the ranks just by fixing ships, the brunette didn't think him qualified to learn about the mission. Unless….

No. Perhaps, she was just overthinking it. Being a bounty hunter and a Jedi on the run has made her paranoid. There were many ways that Bonga could've learned of the mission. He might've accidentally entered a debriefing or overheard one of the soldiers during mealtime. Ezra might've told him. The boy was still learning the meaning of secrecy in regards to highly classified information. Not everyone was their friend, and not everyone had the good of the Rebellion in mind. But, even though Solstice thought that Bonga was a friend, that didn't mean he was out of the woods just yet. The reaction of Doctor Serth raised her levels of suspicion to where it was bordering dangerous paranoia.

She cocked out her hip, leisurely placing her hand on top of her lightsaber. It was a precautionary and habitual action, one that had Kanan and Ezra on edge. They both learned the hard way what the posture meant when they served together for a mission. It was like how a predator reacted to danger, tensing as if getting ready to pounce and scanning the area, as if assessing the situation.

While to an outsider, it would appear that Solstice was just relaxing and losing a sense of her surroundings. But to those in the Jedi Order who knew her like they knew themselves, she in fact, gaining a better position. From her posture, her enemies opened themselves up, revealed their weak point by way of posture. It was an interesting tactic used by her during the confrontations against the likes of Dooku and Grievous. Not enough to where it ended their lives, but enough so she was able to escape their clutches with her life.

Now, she was in that posture, because of something. She would only slide into that posture when she really believed danger was nearby.

"So," the bounty hunter's tone was light, forcing the slowly-tensing atmosphere to lighten up. "How are we doing on power?"

"Not good." Bonga answered. "The ship's engine has been compromised."

"But it's just been sitting here." Ezra pointed out.

"True, but it's an old ship. It was old during the Clone Wars."

Solstice felt herself wonder. Bonga said that about her ship, even though that it wasn't. It has just been through a lot and seen a lot of action. Suddenly, more and more things didn't make sense. Whenever Solstice brought her ship to any other mechanics, they would be able to fix her ship to the point where she could wait five years before having to and get it fixed again. But whenever she took it to Bonga, whatever he fixed would have to be fixed almost immediately. Her ship was old, but not that old. Solstice spared a glance over at Doctor Serth while Ezra, Kanan, Rex, Carter and Hogan walked forward. Hogan and Carter hung back a little bit, examining the ship with amazement. When the scientist caught her eye, she strolled as casually as she could toward him, a question glinting in her eyes.

"You know him?" She whispered. The bounty hunter tried to seem like she was making sure he had everything he needed to make a break from the Empire and the Nazis. Doctor Serth nodded.

"I know him, not as Bonga though." He whispered back. "He was one of the higher-ups that decided to use my wife and son against me. In that circle, he's known as Mikael Worr."

That was the thing that had the floor drop out from underneath Solstice's feet. Her heart stopped when she heard a grunt of pain. When she turned, she paled at the sight. Ezra had been knocked to his feet, clutching his arm in pain, while Bonga had Carter on his knees, a blaster pointed at the young man's temple. Hogan, Kanan and Rex slowly started to back up, their hand in the air. Ezra did the same, once he managed to stand shakily to his feet. Solstice took a step forward, but Bonga just shook his head.

"Come any closer and your boyfriend won't live to see the next sunrise."

This was not good. At all.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Colonel Robert E. Hogan always considered himself a man of control. No matter the situation, the brown-haired man always sought control. It was very rare for a situation to be out of Hogan's control.

Like the one in he was in now.

Carter was on his knees, with a pistol-like weapon pointed at his head. For all of Carter's faults, the kid didn't look to be the least frightened. The kid was hurt, clutching his burnt shoulder where it he had been hit, though it didn't look too bad. And Solstice…Hogan had never seen a woman look so angry, so ready to kill before. It was a side he hoped to never be on the receiving end of. Her fingerless gloved hand was slowly inching towards her weapon. Hogan tried to think of something that would help, but there was a rare rise of panic. He pushed the panic down as far as he could and remained neutral in his expression.

But, like mentioned earlier, Solstice was the exact opposite.

"Why Bonga?" The brunette demanded. "Why betray us?"

"Why not?" the creature asked. He (more like an 'it' in Hogan's opinion) pressed his weapon into Carter's temple. "The Empire is paying handsomely for Jedi. So, not only do I get three Jedi, but Rebels and the infamous White Eagle as well. I'll be set for the rest of my life and won't have to work another day."

Doctor Serth shifted, catching Bonga's eyes.

"Ah, welcome Doctor Serth." The webbed-fingered creature welcomed mockingly. "Emperor Palpatine has been looking for you. He misses his high-ranking scientists."

"You mean his weapons-maker?" Doctor Serth corrected with such venom. "I refuse to make weapons of destruction for a tyrant who uses fear to control his subjects."

"Ah, but you misunderstand our beloved leader. Palpatine only wants to restore balance to the galaxy after the Jedi threw it into chaos."

"You're too blinded by greed to see what your 'beloved leader' does in order to maintain that peace." Solstice growled. "Entire species have been exterminated or enslaved because they refused to bend a knee to thefalse peace that Palpatine promises."

"That was their fault." Bonga grabbed Carter by the collar and forced him to stand. "I would love to chat but I'm afraid I have a rendezvous with the Imperial Navy. If you think about moving, pretty boy here will pay the price."

"Bonga, I'm giving you one last warning." Solstice's tone was dangerously low and calm. Hogan glanced over at the others. Rex had his weapons pulled out, as did Kanan and Ezra, though the latter two had their light-swords ignited. There was an ominous blueish glow that surrounded the group. Solstice's hand was about to grasp her lightsaber, but she hesitated, probably to give her 'friend' one more chance to lay down his weapon peacefully. "Put down your weapon and surrender. Otherwise, I will be forced to do something I may regret."

"I'm not scared of you, Jedi."

Behind him, Hogan heard Ezra whisper, "He should."

Solstice narrowed her eyes and Hogan felt himself involuntarily shiver in fear. "Then you leave me no choice."

The brunette removed her lightsaber and activated it. The emerald green light of her blade mingled with the others. A breeze came by blowing Solstice's hair out of the way. Hogan barely allowed a gasp to escape at the sight of a long scar that disappeared beneath the collar of her shirt. It must've been a part of the many scars that Carter had spotted on her back. When Hogan blinked, Solstice was charging the creature, a primordial growl ripping through her throat. Bonga hit Carter on the back of his head, knocking him out, but also pushing him out of the way of conflict. Hogan thought that the creature was done for, until he pulled out a long staff, whose ends crackled with electricity. He managed to block Solstice's attack. The others leapt into battle, but Rex moved to help get Carter out of the way of the fight. Hogan helped move him away from the four of the quarreling warriors.

"Colonel?" The young man asked as Hogan started to look over him.

"I'm here, Carter."

"Solstice is pretty angry." He rasped.

"I have to agree with that."

The boy cracked a smile, despite the pain he was in. "It's kinda hot."

Hogan glanced over at Rex, who had a smile on his face. The older man shrugged before he turned Carter over and started to a check over. A moment later, Ezra hit the tree with a painful sounding crash. While Rex was checking over Carter, Hogan went over to check on Ezra. He sighed when he realized the boy was alive but unconscious. The brunet colonel sighed before glancing over at the two remaining warriors. Hogan had to admit that Kanan and Solstice were impressive with their weapons. Flips, kicks, blocks and fancy moves were easily executed flawlessly by the two. They worked almost as if they had trained together (which they might've done considering their shared past). However, as well as they worked together, it seemed the creature known as Bonga was better at fighting as they were. He stuck Kanan with the end of his staff. He fell, smoking slightly, leaving only Solstice left.

Bonga chuckled while Solstice knelt down and checked her friend. "How pathetic. Most of the other Jedi gave some kind of challenge. You and your friends are little more than a workout."

Solstice stood up, and the two started to circle each other. Hogan managed to get Kanan out of the way.

"Do you know how many of your kind I killed? So many, and they didn't expect a thing." Bonga's taunts seemed to roll off Solstice, her face neutral, calm and calculating. "They screamed beautifully when I stabbed them in the back, quite literally."

That seemed do it. Solstice let loose a guttural roar as she charged. There was a sizzling and hissing sound made when the two ends collided. Colonel Hogan winced as the light near about lit up the area. When it died down, he gasped when he saw Bonga's staff was cut in two. The ends sputtered before going out completely. The creature threw down the scrapped weapon before launching himself at Solstice. With a single thrust, Solstice stabbed her lightsaber through his chest. Bonga's eyes went wide and his body went rigid as the blade easily slid through his body. The stench of cooking flesh permeated the air a moment later. Solstice allowed her weapon to deactivate. The creature's dead body dropped to the ground with a thump.

"You have to move," Solstice ordered. "The patrols will be here any minute now."

"You're not coming with us?" Ezra asked as he stood with a slight groan.

"I think it's pretty obvious that I'm being targeted." She gazed toward the dead body. "It's pretty clear that even my allies have ulterior motives. If I go back, I won't know who to trust. Besides, I like it here. It's simple."

"If you ever change your mind, we could use a warrior like you." Rex stated.

"Thank you, Rex." Her face wrinkled in disgust. "Don't worry about Bonga. I'll get his body somewhere so that the patrols don't find it. Give my regards to the others."

"Will do." Ezra, Rex, Doctor Serth and his daughter quickly loaded the ship. Rex and Ezra carried a still-unconscious Kanan between them. Doctor Serth and his daughter paused, waving at the three of them before following the Rebels.

Hogan and Solstice managed to drag a slightly injured Carter behind a bush as the ship started up and started to raise into the air. The three humans covered their eyes to protect them from the dust that was stirred by the engines. Almost as soon as the ship vanished in a blink of an eye, Solstice got to work hiding the body right as lights appeared. Hogan could clearly hear shouting in German and barking of dogs heading their way.

"We gotta get out of here." Hogan whispered. Solstice had just barely finished hiding the body of the creature before the guards appeared. Luckily the three of them were still hidden deep in the shadow when the guards broke through the trees. They managed to sneak away from the guards and make their way towards Stalag 13, with plenty of time to spare before roll call. Wilson was already there to check them over when they dropped into the tunnel. The medic immediately went over the three to make sure they were okay.

"Is he going to be okay?" Solstice asked as Wilson looked over Carter.

"He'll live. It's just a bump. Maybe sore for a couple of days but it'll go away. And the burn doesn't look too bad. Just short of a flesh wound." He turned to her. "Time for your checkup."

"I'm fine." Solstice assured him. When he poked her chest, she gasped in pain. The brunette giggled nervously. "Guess I'm not."

Once her bruised ribs were wrapped, Solstice returned to her barracks. It was still three or four hours before roll call but despite the busyness of the past few days, Solstice wasn't tired. In fact, she was chatting with Hera Syndulla.

 _"I think I owe you one for keeping my crew alive."_ The Twi'lek stated with a smile.

"Was your mission to free Doctor Serth's wife and son successful?"

 _"You bet. Sabine is tending to them. Nothing too much a couple days in the infirmary won't fix."_

"I'm glad." Solstice smiled softly. "Do you mind patching me through to the main fleet?"

 _"Not at all. Standby White Eagle."_

The Phoenix insignia appeared a moment later. While the transmission tried to get through, Solstice grabbed her helmet that was gathering dust in the corner. She dusted it off and stared at it for a moment before she heard someone knocking on the trap door. The brunette opened, smiling when she saw it was Carter. Solstice helped him up into the barracks. Unfortunately, before either could say anything, there was a beeping noise, emanating from the comm. She held up a finger, placing her helmet on before facing the comm. A moment later, a hooded Fulcrum, Commander Sato and Senator Bail Organa appeared.

"Commander Sato, Senator Organa, Fulcrum." Solstice greeted with a nod to each one of them.

 _"I take it that the mission was successful?"_ Commander Sato asked.

"Specters 1 and 6 have the package and are heading home, Commander."

" _And the traitor?"_ Senator Organa spoke up.

"I wouldn't worry about him. I've tied off loose ends, so we're fine until the next Imperial plant."

 _"You have done well, White Eagle."_ Fulcrum's voice modulator rasped. There was a beeping. _"Your payment has been transferred."_

The bounty hunter checked her wrist screen. There was a slight smile. All the money owed by the Rebellion had been transferred to her secret bank account. "Thank you. If you need anything on this side of the galaxy, know that I am here to assist."

 _"May the Force be with you, White Eagle."_ Fulcrum bowed her head.

"And may the light of the galaxy never extinguish." Solstice bowed her head as well. A moment later, the communication was severed. The bounty hunter sighed as she took her helmet off, allowing her tangled hair to fall over her shoulder. She turned to Carter while she reached for her brush. "So, how's your head feeling?"

"Pretty good. And your ribs?"

"Bruised, but I'll live." She grunted. "Blasted hair. You don't happen to have a knife on you, by any chance?"

"Uh, sure." Carter was hesitant to give her a sharp knife but he did so anyway. To his surprise and shock, Solstice started to hack away her hair until it was a short bob. It was a messy looking cut, but it looked good on her. "Looks good."

"Thanks." She handed him the knife. "If I'm going to start a new life here, might as well start over with everything. Including a new haircut."

Carter started to fidget, unsure if he was doing the right thing. He came here for a purpose, but he wasn't sure if it was the right time. Of course, there was no time like the present. Besides, Solstice was staring at him with a cocked eyebrow, as if she was catching on to her nervousness.

"What's wrong, Carter? You look nervous."

"Oh, it's nothing." Carter took a deep breath before grabbing her hands. "Look, we started off on the wrong foot, but we have come a long way together. I was hoping, maybe, after this war, we can live our lives together, especially since you're going to be staying here a while."

"Andrew, this…I can't believe…. I don't even know what to say." Solstice stuttered. Carter took out the little box that Newkirk managed to whittle for him. Inside, Andrew managed to snag some metal and make a little ring. He only hoped that it would fit Solstice's finger. Taking a deep breath, the young man knelt, still clasping Solstice's left hand. The young woman's eyebrow cocked in shock and surprise as Carter opened the box to reveal the lumpy ring. Her aquamarine eyes went wide in even more shock.

"Carter…"

"Solstice Winters, will you do me the honor of being my wife?"

There was a moment where the young man was afraid that the young woman was going to faint. All she did was stand there, mouth opened and eyes wide. Her mouth opened and closed like a fish gasping for air as if she couldn't quite make the words form. After fifteen minutes and her not saying a word, Andrew was afraid that he might've broken her.

Finally, she spoke, slowly and deliberately, "Andrew, I accept your proposal."

His head snapped up. "Really? You mean that?"

"Of course. Someone has to watch your tail. However, I don't think that we should wait on the ceremony. No telling how long your war'll last."

Carter thought for a moment before he perked up. "I think I have an idea."

A few days later, Hogan had been convinced to oversee the ceremony. The ceremony was small, held underground and had very little pomp and circumstance, but Solstice preferred that way. Her now short hair was brushed back, with a dirtied white headband in her hair. She wore her old Jedi robes with a small bouquet in her hand. Carter was wearing his army uniform, his hair combed back and a dopy smile on his face. The men of the prison camp had gathered underneath the camp, in the tunnel only just big enough for all of them. It was a miracle that Klink hadn't found out, seeing how the entire camp was in the underground but it didn't matter.

Carter and Solstice walked down the aisle together. There was no music, but the men were courteous enough to hum a tune, not in harmony or in tune with each other but it was the thought that counted. Hogan was at the end of the aisle as well as Wilson and another man, whom Solstice was introduced to as the camp priest. When the two ended their walk, Hogan cleared his throat.

"Okay everyone, settle down." He ordered. When it finally quieted down, the colonel turned to the priest. "You're up, Chaplain."

"Gentlemen and lady." The man started to drone on and on but Solstice wasn't listening. She was too busy thinking about the future of her life with Carter. Putting her life as a Jedi and a bounty hunter behind her was going to be difficult, but it would do her good. Her life was changing for the better. Carter and she would enjoy each other's company for the rest of their lives. "And now, your vows."

Solstice went first. "Andrew, my life was boring and stale before I met you. I'll admit, at first, I thought you were young and naïve but you grew on me. I believe together, we can build a new life after we are free."

Carter blinked, unsure of how to follow after that. But he spoke. "Solstice, you are my whole world. The stars shine brighter and clearer with you around. Your smile outshines the brightest supernova. I can't imagine my life without you."

"I now pronounce you man and wife." Solstice broke out in a grin. "You may kiss the bride."

When the two locked lips, the crowd exploded in cheer. They were making quite the noise, in Solstice's opinion. Hogan managed to calm them down enough when the two newlyweds pulled away to speak over the noise.

"Alright, I know everyone wants to celebrate, but there's still a war going on." He reminded them. "You two will have time to spend together later. I have a mission for the two of you, if you're up for it."

"You know it." Solstice informed her new CO. "I feel like I've been cooped up in this place too long. I'm itching for some action."

"You'll get it." Hogan promised with a wink. "Andrew, you stay here and watch after everything. Be ready to leave after morning roll call."

Solstice smirked at her new husband. She winked at him before heading to her barracks for some well-deserved rest before her next mission.

Another, boring day.


	14. Epilogue

Epilogue: Aftermath

1945….

A year after Solstice and Andrew were married, the Second World War was coming to a close. The Allies had advanced through Europe, pushing the Nazis and their allies back and making their way towards Berlin, the heart of Germany. Mid-April of 1945, Stalag 13 had been liberated, though there wasn't much of a fight as Klink had surrendered long before the Allies arrived. General Burkhalter, none too pleased at Klink's cowardice, was led away in binders while Klink was just flanked by two guards. Solstice had to bit back a snicker at his face.

Solstice observed the green-clad soldiers round up all of the Nazis soldiers and guards from her position by Barracks Two. Several of them tended to the former prisoners. The short-haired brunette scanned the compound once again. Everything seemed pretty organized, despite the initial chaos. Most of the prisoners were still laughing and going around the camp excitedly as they celebrated being free. She, on the other hand, was thinking about how being free was going to affect how she continued the fight. Hogan promised that she would be able to help with the rest of the war, seeing as how she had military experience. But from the way the medics and some of the higher ups treated her, it would be difficult to do anything.

"Solstice!" The woman turned her head, smiling when she saw Lebeau running towards her. She embraced the small man in a tight hug, a laugh and smile escaping. Even though the former bounty hunter didn't belong to any one country on this planet, she was sure happy. And even though she didn't make it through one war, Solstice was extremely happy she got to see the end of this one. "We won! We won!"

"Lebeau! Solstice!" Both turned their head toward the voice. Newkirk was jogging towards them, a big old smile on his face. "Colonel Hogan needs to see us near the Kommadant's office."

Both members of Hogan's team shrugged before they both made their way towards the office. All of Hogan's main team was there. Solstice smiled and embraced her husband, which caused him to blush thoroughly. His eyes flickered over to the stranger that Hogan was talking to. The man was clearly a general, with five stars on his helmet and uniform. The former bounty hunter shrugged before separating herself and pulling herself into a posture of respect and subordination. Finally, the two higher-ups stopped talking and the general turned towards them.

"So, this is your team." He commented, eyes scanning everyone. "Good to finally meet you all. Glad to be able to meet the team responsible for causing the Nazis all that trouble."

"It was our pleasure." Solstice commented, cocking out her hip in habit. The general did a double take with her but it was well hidden.

"I want to commemorate this day." The general announced, gesturing to the man with a primitive camera. Everyone in Hogan's team lined up, with the taller ones in the back and the shorter ones in the front. Solstice and Andrew stood side by side and, at the last minute, gazed into each other's eyes, so there would no mistaking who they were.

Years later, when both Solstice and Andrew were hunched over and grey, they looked back fondly on the past. They shared stories of their adventures, whether they be separate ones or the ones they worked as team, to their kids and eventually, their many grandkids. None of them believed that Solstice was an alien, but the old woman didn't care. None of their kids or grandkids were force-sensitive, which both disappointed and relieved the former bounty hunter. She didn't want to introduce them to the crazy life. While they thought that Solstice was just a crazy old woman, they enjoyed the 'made-up' stories that grandma told them.

After Andrew passed away, Solstice and her eldest son, Jay Carr Carter, were cleaning out the attic when they came across the picture taken at the end of World War Two. At that point in her life, she had stopped telling everyone that she was an alien bounty hunter due to the fact that they had threatened to lock her up in the loony house. Solstice stared at the picture, gently stroking her husband's face with a soft smile. She still remembered that day clearly. The sun on her face, a light warm breeze blowing. Jay leaned over when he noticed his mother staring at something.

"What's that, mom?" He asked as she passed it over to him.

"The last day of the Second World War." Solstice remembered. "Those men and I were a part of a secret group that ran an espionage and sedition campaign against the Nazis. I thought I told you this story."

"I know, mom." Jay squinted at the picture. "What are you wearing? They look like robes or something."

"They are." Solstice said as she walked out of the attic. She smirked when she felt her son's disbelieving gaze on her neck. There was going to be a lot of questions later.

Oh how perfect her life turned out to be.


End file.
